


Moth, Bats, Cat and Bug

by Tineabean



Category: Batman - All Media Types, Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Aged-Up Character(s), Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Angst, Badass Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Because I'm infected, Big Brother Jason, Blood and Injury, Cool cool, Crossover, Evil Lila Rossi, F/M, He's probably a little OOC, I got addicted to this pairing, MariBat, Mild Language, Panic Attacks, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Reunions, So much angst, Soft Damian Wayne, This Is Why We Can't Have Nice Things, Unhealthy Coping Mechanisms, Violence, batfam, do all authors love to torture characters?, is fic writing contagious?, just me?, like - read nearly half of the fics on here addicted, tbh so is everyone, these characters are my playthings
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-10-15
Updated: 2021-01-01
Packaged: 2021-03-08 19:14:08
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 11
Words: 35,080
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27031750
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Tineabean/pseuds/Tineabean
Summary: I used the common trope for this paring and had Mari on a trip to Gotham, but I haven't read anything else with this plot so here we go!Marinette Todd Dupain-Chang hasn't had the easiest life, and she'll be the first to admit it (and then try to blow it off with "it is what it is") and while she was planning to return to her home town one day, she didn't think it'd be when Hawkmoth was still at large. Unable to pass up the opportunity and ignore the pull she feels - she finds herself once again in the home of the famed BatFam™ (which has really grown since she was last here - seriously, Batman is worse than Bruce Wane). What she finds there is a dead brother who isn't exactly dead, a boy with forest green eyes that she keeps thinking about for some reason, and a plot that really speeds up her plans to take out her enemy.Welcome to my story! Please leave comments, constructive criticism, and sarcastic remarks!
Relationships: Dick Grayson/Koriand'r, Luka Couffaine/Kagami Tsurugi, Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug/Damian Wayne
Comments: 568
Kudos: 976





	1. Wayyyy too much exposition... sorry

**Author's Note:**

> Hello!  
> This is my first ao3 story, and I wrote it under great protest. (I seriously was just curious about the tag and now it's two weeks later and my life has become MariBat trash). I love writing, and use fics as a way to get some practice in - so please leave comments, questions and constructive criticism - it's kinda why I'm doing it :). I tried to get on a MariBat discord to hunt down a beta reader, but couldn't find someone to give me an invite to one, so this hasn't been looked over and I apologize for any inconsistencies or errors. Enjoy! :D

Marinette had learned that there were upsides to social isolation over the past few years. 

For one thing, it made sneaking off to transform incredibly easy. And for another, it freed up a LOT of time. If it weren’t for the nightmare-induced insomnia, she’d actually get a good amount of sleep despite moonlighting as a magic superhero. Sure she’d lost nearly all her friends at school and had to deal with always being on Lila’s shit list (and therefore Alya’s as she never missed a chance to go off on Mari these days), but it sure made the whole “double life” thing easier. 

She tried to focus on these positives as she watched the yellow buses’ tail lights fade into Gotham’s early morning fog. She released an exasperated sigh.  _ Why am I not surprised? _

She looked around, and allowed the achingly familiar stench filling her lungs. Gotham, New Jersey - it was odd to be back.

She let her mind wander as she started off at a brisk pace, stuffing her hands into her thick jacket and hunching up her shoulders to burrow into her scarf. Stupid bug tendencies. 

She was born to the name Marianne - or Mary - Johnson, but had changed it to Mary Todd when she was about 4. Her birth parents were neglectful at the best of times, so when a kind boy offered to take her away after finding her hiding out on her building’s rusted fire escape to avoid the bottles being thrown during yet another argument - she didn’t hesitate. Jason often said that her first house was just a crappy pit-stop in her life, and he was always meant to find her. He even apologized a few times for being late. 

Jason Todd. Her big brother in all but blood. She missed his big stupid face. She missed how he always went out of his way to make her smile - he could always tell when she was getting in a depressive slump. She missed how he spent hours each day teaching her and any other kid that showed interest how to fight and survive. She missed all the old classics he used to read her at night. 

She missed scolding him when he’d come back to their hideout covered in cuts and bruises after a fight with a local thug. She missed the exaggerated pout he’d pull when she was ignoring him after she was done patching him up. She missed him scolding her about neglecting her own health to mother hen him (and anyone else she happened to emotionally adopt). She missed hiding the stray animals she’d smuggled in. She missed the stupid nicknames he always used… 

She missed her brother.

_ But _ , she shook herself,  _ he’s gone now…  _ Joker  _ made sure of that.  _ She mentally spat the demented clown’s name and had to tamp down the ever-present rage that accompanied thoughts of that night.

There were a few times when Mary Had been picked up by the GCPD and placed in a foster home, but Jason always came for her - social workers seemed to see a tiny girl in pigtails and think she’d make a great success story to boost their careers. That last time, she was placed with a family in Metropolis with a new name, Marinette Smith. She waited and waited, but Jason never came. 

A few months after arriving in Metropolis, she was taken to a new foster home. Another few months later, she was traded off again - they seemed to think bouncing her around the city was the best way to keep her from being found - and they were right. 

The foster families were rarely pleasant, and she never felt at home - Jason was her home. Mary waited a whole year and a half before finally deciding to take matters into her own hands. She “borrowed” some bus money from the family she was staying with and headed back to Gotham. 

She looked all over their main hideout, but it looked as if no one had been there for awhile. She started to get worried after two days of scouring all their meeting spots and finding nothing. She started to ask around, but it turned out she wasn’t the only one interested in finding him - the Joker had been looking for him as well. She was snatched by one of the clown’s goons and used as bait (along with some woman who was apparently his birth mom?) to lure her brother to his death. 

The last time she’d seen Jason alive had been when he was left in the warehouse with his biological mother and a bomb, while the Joker had dragged Mary kicking and screaming with him as he ‘still had so much fun planned for her’. She was then taken to a nearby rooftop and made to watch as the warehouse exploded and spewed pitch black smoke into the air. 

Batman had shown up, and in trying to avoid being caught, the Joker had been careless and nearly ran right into the approaching fire department and police - in the ensuing confusion, Mary had wrenched herself free and fled to the warehouse. 

She arrived just in time to watch Batman emerge from the wreckage carrying her brother. She didn’t need to be close to know. 

He was gone. 

She didn’t - couldn’t - stay there, so she ran. She ran, and ran until she couldn’t move anymore, and then collapsed just inside an alleyway - sobbing her heart out. That’s where she was found by the GCPD later that night. 

Marinette, now eight, was truly alone in the world. 

She was near catatonic, and she refused to give them any details about the injuries she’d acquired from the Joker or about what she had seen that caused such a reaction. Several of the officers were familiar with her, and knew that while she wasn’t fond of being taken from her brother, she was a kind and sweet girl - something big must have happened. They spoke to a social worker who recommended a change of scenery - so she was sent to Paris, France to live with a kind couple who’d wanted a little girl and weren't able to have one of their own.

She decided on the long flight across the sea that Mary Todd had died with her brother in that warehouse. She was Marinette now, and it was the only way she could see to move forward. 

It was almost like she’d shed her old life like a worn out coat. There was definitely an adjustment period - it took a bit to learn the language, and there were the frequent nightmares, but she was soon able to shove Mary Todd down deep into her heart and lock her away. 

Her new family was very kind and understanding of her past. They were the only ones she had spoken to about Jason, and in honor of him, when they legally changed her name, it became Marinette Todd Dupain-Chang. Quite a mouthful, but each name was dear to her - she felt that by keeping the name Jason had given her, she was keeping him with her at all times.

As kind as they were, the Dupain-Changs were business owners and she was often left to her own devices. They weren’t neglectful - certainly not in the way she’d known from her parents and some foster homes - but there were great gaps of loneliness in her day. 

To keep her thoughts from straying to her life before, she took up sewing and found that she was quite talented - in just a few years, there was little that she or her parents owned that wasn’t at least altered by her.    
  


She also found that she had a knack for learning languages with how easily she’d picked up French. Sabine gladly taught her Mandarin and Cantonese, and Mari was currently working on Japanese and Spanish. She loved the way each tongue danced to a different tune and challenged her with the native grammar rules and slang. 

Ladybug was an unexpected turn of events, and she’d ended up pulling Mary out to donate her street smarts and 6th sense for danger. Her two personalities clashed at first, but soon worked well together behind the mask - Mary protected Marinette, and Marinette helped Mary look beyond the danger waiting around every corner. Tikki said that her two sides were what made her the first true holder she’d seen in a millennia as they balanced her out the way Plagg does for her. 

Allowing Mary to breathe again helped her start to heal from the wounds she’d been pretending didn’t exist. She used her new hero position to reevaluate her anger at the Dark Knight - seeing that he was a man behind the mask and therefore not at fault for the actions of psycho clown. 

Coming to that decision, she’d found the courage to reach out to the Justice League for help after she was named guardian. They’d come to an agreement to keep all heroes out of Paris (as akumatized civilians were difficult enough) and to keep the knowledge of what was happening in Paris from the general public - even keeping it from most of the League and other heroes. Only a select few of the founding members knew of the situation (The Flash, Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, and Martian Manhunter) - and as the daughter of a previous Ladybug, Wonder Woman insisted on helping to train the young heroes in combat outside of the city’s borders. 

Mary was called to show up in her civilian life after Lila got a firm hold on the minds of her classmates - she’d needed her 6th sense to avoid tripping over well-place feet and other obstacles, and she needed Mary’s thick skin to survive the torrent of hateful looks, texts, and words thrown at her almost constantly in the beginning. 

It wasn’t everyone - Alex, Kim, Max, and Nathanel were still friendly, but even they seemed to question her motives at times, and she didn’t get any support from them. The others simply asked her why she would do such things, or stayed out of it as much as possible - Alya and Lila were her main tormentors. She learned quickly to never bring her sketchbooks to school, stay alert on or near the stairs, and to get to class early to avoid getting caught in the halls or coming into a full classroom where it was hard to watch her back on the way to her seat. 

Adrian knew what was going on, but she’d learned that he was being basically blackmailed by his father, and her poor kitty was suffering under the thumb of a sausage-haired witch. They’d revealed their identities the year before, unable to handle the strain alone any longer. They’d laughed about the ridiculous circles they’d run in at first with their affections, but that had mellowed out over time to become an unbreakable sibling-like bond. Knowing each other’s identities only served to strengthen their bond, and Adrian would often sneak out to spend the night and relax. 

They had a standing sleepover date every week with Kagami and Luka (their identities were revealed soon after they were made permanent holders - Marinette finally decided not to continue Fu’s tradition of isolation) to unwind as the battles were taking their toll. Hawkmoth and Myura were becoming stronger, and the akumas and amucks reflected that. They started to target stronger emotions of pain and loss - it took longer and longer to finish a fight, and all of Paris had died several times over by now. Ladybug and her team were no longer kids, their lives as superheroes had made sure of that. 

Her new powers as Guardian took some time to get used to - there was so much information that was basically downloaded into her brain when she’d returned home after the events of Miracle Queen. Wayzz explained that she had gained the knowledge that Master Fu lost, and as a perfect holder, she gained abilities Fu knew about, but was never able to access. She could see potential and past holders, she could now see a person’s aura when she focused, and she was able to transform the appearance of the miraculous. There were now five active holders - herself, Adrian, Luka, Kagami, and, as of two weeks before she left for Gotham - Chloe. 

Chloe was excited, but stoic when presented once again with the Bee miraculous. She’d been on probation for the last six months and had performed well under her new look and name - Red Wasp - but it wasn’t an easy road for her to regain their trust after the battle for the miraculous. Her parents were less likely to give in to what she wanted, and they had placed her in counselling soon after her mother returned to Paris. She’d come to recognize her actions and the trouble they’d caused. 

About six months after Ladybug had been named Guardian, Chloe had asked for a meeting on top of her father’s hotel. Ladybug and Chat went, but they weren’t expecting her to burst into tears and beg their forgiveness as soon as they landed. They’d spent a long night on that roof talking about her life and how she could regain their trust. She had made it clear that while she didn’t expect them to ever make her a holder again, she was going to train to be ready if they ever needed her. 

Marinette had several long talks with Pollen and the other Kwamii, and it took over two years, but she had finally asked Chole to take on the bee miraculous once again - under strict watch and with serious consequences if she reverted to her old ways. Chole may have gained the miraculous by accident the first time, but she was a perfect fit for Pollen, and her drive to prove herself made her a fierce ally. 

Marinette had decided to change Chloe over to a permanent holder right before she left for Gotham as Chloe was no longer attending their school, and would remain behind with the others. The team had revealed their identities to her at the last sleepover right before she left, and the following shocked spluttering had been extremely entertaining to watch. To help keep her identity, Marinette had transformed the bee comb to a simple honey-comb patterned bangle. 

They had nightly conference calls scheduled to go over how the patrols had gone, and all the holders in Paris were instructed to call Marinette as soon as Hawkmoth started stirring up trouble - she had the horse miraculous in her bag to join the fight at a moment’s notice. 

Adrian wasn’t allowed to join the class, no matter how he and the others pleaded with his father - but he couldn’t deny that as much as he wanted to go, he was glad to get some time away from Lila. Over the years, Gabriel and Lila had tightened their hold on Adrian - if it weren’t for Kagami, he would’ve had to give up his miraculous due to being unable to get away and help. Kagami and Adrian had dated for a time, but it didn’t last long. Adrian joked that he was doomed to be friendzoned by anyone that showed the slightest interest, but he was happy for her and Luka, who had now been dating for almost two and a half years. 

_ ~End of exposition that went much longer than I meant it to…~ _

Marinette checked her phone as she sidestepped a pedestrian running to the bus stop on the corner, and giggled at the group chat the miraculous team had going - Chole was arguing with Adrian as he’d changed her handle to yet another bee pun, and Kagami was making more suggestions. Once that girl had learned how puns worked, she was almost as bad as Chat. It was even better when she delivered them in person as her dry tone made it hard for those who didn’t know her to tell if she was serious or not (she totally played it up on purpose, Mari was sure). She put her phone away just in time to grab the hand that was deftly reaching into her bag. 

Big brown eyes stared at her, as the little hand dropped her wallet back into her bag. The kid looked no older than ten, and the wrist was uncomfortably thin. The ratty hoodie that threatened to swallow the slight frame made it hard to tell, but it looked like a little boy. He flashed his eyes fearfully toward a nearby alley way, and Mari followed his gaze to see an even smaller kid cowering in the shadows - a little girl. She locked eyes with the boy again, and he glared at her, trying to wriggle out of her hold.

“You’re not half bad” Mari kept her voice low and non-threatening, easing her iron hold, but not releasing him “If I didn’t grow up doing the same thing, I may not have even noticed.”


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ok, so I was gonna wait a week or until the first comment to post this chapter - and I got a comment 11 minutes after I posted the first chapter!!! I wasn't even done doing my final review of this! I totally squealed! :D :D :D :D  
> THANK YOU "Lori"!!! You have absolutely made my day!  
> I do have more written up, but don't want to put it all out there as I'm still working on figuring out where I want it to go and want to avoid re-writes as much as possible.  
> One last note - I am fairly familiar with the Miraculous world and many of the fan theories, but have limited knowledge of the Bat world. I love shows like Young Justice and Teen Titans, but haven't seen many of the movies. I am going to be mainly pulling my BatFam and DC knowledge from the fics I've read and the few shows I've watched. I hope that I don't sound to ignorant - but feel free to air out grievances in the comments. :D

He stopped, staring up at her, before he attempted a fierce glare.

“You aint like me, you’re forign.” She raised an eyebrow at him, “And even if you grew up on the streets, there aint no street…”

“Like a Gotham street.” She finished the familiar saying for him, allowing a long forgotten accent to color her words. 

His jaw dropped, and he went slack in her hold. The little girl who had been slowly inching up behind them obviously heard her remark, and bounced over - all thoughts of getting the drop on the strange forign girl to release her brother forgotten. 

“Yous like us?!” She stood by her brother and bounced in place, her eyes shining.

Mari laughed at the girl’s quick change in demeanor and finally released the boy’s hand to ruffle her hair. 

“Yes, I grew up here, just like you.” The boy immediately grabbed his sister’s hand, pulling her close to his side. He looked interested in what Mari had to say, but was watching her carefully. It made her heart ache with familiarity. She found herself asking a question without really thinking.

“Do you two know if Rudy’s is still on 10th?” The boy warily nodded, and the girl started excitedly spouting off about how much she loved the smells that came from the diner. 

“Well, it looks like I might be getting a little rusty - if I hadn’t been reaching for my bag anyway, I wouldn't've caught ya.” The boy flushed at the praise. “What if you two helped me keep my wallet, and I pay you in breakfast?”

The girl squealed and ripped her hand from her brother’s to hug Mari’s legs. The boy gave her a calculating look, but nodded. He pried his sister from her legs, the little girl instead latched onto her hand with the one not already clasped in her brother’s. They walked down the street, the girl, Lizzy, she had chipped when asked, was swinging the hands connected to hers, happy as a clam. Her brother, Sam, his sister supplied when he’d refused to answer, was constantly on the lookout - taking his job very seriously. 

Lizzy chatted on for the five blocks they trekked to the diner, Mari asking questions when she took a breath. Luckily, the diner was only half a block from the Wayne Enterprise building where the tour her class was set to take would start in an hour - the tour SHE SET UP. She frowned at the thought, but wasn’t surprised that she’d been left behind as they’d tried to do it on the way to and from the airports yesterday. 

She studied the two as they walked, they were obviously related, and there weren’t any noticeable marks or bruises, so there’s a good chance they weren’t “owned” by a gang or group. Lizzy’s aura was a bright and shining teal, whereas Sam’s was a rich orange - though his was more muted than his sisters. For street kids they weren’t as bad off as they could be, but that didn’t mean they were all that lucky. 

Rudy’s was just as busy as Mari remembered, and the only table with any room was a booth occupied by a man who looked half-dead typing away on an expensive looking laptop. 

“Excuse me,” Mari tapped him on the shoulder, and he jolted, nearly spilling his large personal mug of coffee. She gave him a sheepish smile, sorry to have startled him. “Ah, sorry, I was just wondering if we could sit here?” 

Though the man looked close to passing out there and then, his eyes were sharp as they took her and the two children in, raising an eyebrow before nodding. 

Mari ushered the two in before her, and took the outside spot for herself. The fit wasn’t as tight as it should have been. She watched Sam help Lizzy into a booster chair that a waitress had brought over with coloring pages and crayons. She wondered if she and Jason had looked that malnourished. She certainly remembered being hungry, but… Her heart ached for them, and she prayed that their childhood wasn’t as… eventful as hers had been. She grimaced at some of the memories that surfaced before pushing them down and turning to the menu. 

“Well kiddos, what’ll it be?” She decided to let the old accent stick, as it seemed to put the boy at ease to hear it’s familiar lilt, and turned to the two after a moment spent making her own choice of waffles and a fruit bowl.

“This one, this one, this one!!” Lizzy pointed to a picture of a giant plate of eggs, pancakes, bacon and sausage. It was on the adult menu, but Mari didn’t doubt that the girl could eat it all and more.

“That one it is, and what about you, grumpy pants?” She turned to Sam and stifled a laugh at the indignant look he gave her at the nickname. He stuck his tongue out when she didn’t hide it well, before also pointing to the meal his sister had chosen. 

Mari flagged down a waitress, and placed their order with milk for the two kids and large black coffee for herself. The two turned to their coloring pages, and she actually watched the tension leave Sam’s shoulders. Not all of it mind you, but it was enough to make her heart lift a little. She secretly snapped a quick pic and opened her messages.

**FashionableBug:** So it turns out that getting left behind (surprise, surprise) has its perks

**Cat-astrophe:** Everything ok Bug?

**FashionableBug:** Yeah, I just sort of picked up a few strays on my way to Wayne Tower… 

Image_attached

**Cat-astrophe:** Oh. My. Whiskers. They’re ADORABLE!!! (and  _ waaay  _ too skinny - and I know skinny)

**FashionableBug:** Yeah, I’m getting them breakfast, and want to do more, but don’t know what. Haven’t planned that far ahead… They’re street kids, so they might not let me do much more - but they’re trusting me enough that I have some hope

**StingerQueen:** I pledge whatever funds you need to get them at least into something warm - and a bath. They look dreadful, utterly dreadful! - and it isn’t even the best angle!

**BladeOfHonor:** Seconded

**GuitarHero:** My guess is they’re much more trusting of you than they would be of anyone else, Maribug, you’ve got a way with those whose songs are muted and dark.

**FashionableBug:** I may have let them in on some of our similarites to help them trust me a little easier… Gothamites do share a unique bond

**StingerQueen: “** Gothamites”?! You make it sound like you’ve been there before...

**FashionableBug:** Oh, yeah, forgot that I hadn’t told you that yet… the foods almost here, Luka, would you mind filling her in?

**GuitarHero:** Will do Maribug, let us know how it goes with those two

**FashionableBug:** You got it

Mari put her phone on silent as it continued to ping with messages. Her group were some of the few that knew she grew up here. Her parents, Nino and Kim were the only others, and they made a point not to talk about it or the city’s vigalanties as they served as triggers for panic attacks when she first came to Paris. 

Her musings were intrupted by the waitress bringing over the three plates of food, two stacked significantly higher. The two kids were nearly vibrating in their seats, and barely had time for a “thank you!” to the waitress before digging in. Mari accepted her plate and large coffee with a thanks, and quietly requested for two additional sides of hashbrowns. The waitress nodded and paused to fill the cup of the man across the table with coffee before returning to the kitchen to place the additional order. 

“You don’t look like you’re from around here, but you sure sound like it.” Mari’s steel bluebell eyes snapped to meet the clear sky blue across the table. The man seemed to be studying her. 

“I was born in Gotham, but moved to Paris when I was eight. I’m here visiting with my class for a trip.” She returned his calculating gaze. His aura was pure, royal blue with a tinge of green swirrled in. It was deep in color, but vivid and sure of itself - if not a little dark along the edges. She sensed no malise, but there was a lot of heartache and world-wearryness. She suddenly got a strong impression that she could trust this stranger with her very life. Odd. She was hesitant to trust people - especially after her class’s betrayal. 

“Do you mean the group sponsored by Bruce Wayne?” He quirked an eyebrow at her nod. “What are you doing on your own? Shouldn’t you be with your teacher?” He didn’t say it as if he doubted her ability to take care of herself - merely as if the situation was wrong - so she didn’t take offence.

“Technically, yes, but I was left behind and had to walk.” She gestured to her companions. “Met these two on the way.” She speared a strawberry and savored the burst of juice. 

The man frowned. “That’s incredibly irresponsible of them.”

“I’m used to it.” She waved it off with a gesture of her fork, “They’re not overly fond of me, and the teacher is dense enough to believe whatever bull story they fed her to get her to leave early.” A wicked smile took over her face. “Jokes on them though, I organized the whole trip - including the tour, and have their NDAs with me. They can’t start until I get there.”

The man looked even more shocked. “Marinette Dupain-Chang?”

She started in surprise. “Yes? How…”

He barked a laugh and stretched a hand across the table to her. “Tim Drake, nice to meet you face to face.”

Her own laugh joined his as she took the offered hand. “It’s nice to finally put a face to all the emails, Mr. Drake.” 

“Just Tim is fine, Miss Dupain-Chang.”

“Then I’m Marinette.” She smiled, turning back to her breakfast.

“You know Bruce Wayne.” Sam’s voice piped up from next to her. She glanced over to see an awestruck look on his face.

Tim snorted. “Oh yes, I know Bruce, and trust me, he looses a lot of the ‘cool factor’ once you’ve seen him in his Batman underwear.” He waggled his eyebrows at the kids and they burst into giggles.

Marinette choked on her coffee at the mental image and tried to control her own giggles long enough to swallow.

“Great,” She gasped, “Now I’m not gonna be able to help laughing in his face if I ever meet him.” She knew herself too well and hoped that he was away on busness this month.

“All the more reason to introduce you, I say.” Tim laughed, grinning wickedly.

“Nooo.” She whined, burrying her face in her hands. She didn’t know why she was so comfortable around Tim, as she’d only communicated though formal email with the young man before, but it was as if she’d known him all her life. 

They were intrrupted by the waitress bringing over the sides of hashbrowns and two new glasses of milk. Mari wasn’t surprised to see two empty plates in front of her two companions. They eagerly took to the new dishes with gusto, and the waitress removed their plates as well as Mari’s as she had also finished. The kids finished their hashbrowns quickly, and they all piled out of the booth, Mari leaving a hefty tip behind and waving to Tim. 

Just outside the diner, she stopped the two. 

“Ok,” She sighed, crouching down to their eye level. ”I have to go catch up with my class now, but I’d like to take you two shopping tomorrow. Would that be alright with you?” 

Lizzy nodded instantly, her smile bright as can be, but Sam studied her.

“Why would you want to hang around us?” 

“You heard what I said to Mr. Drake in there about how my class doesn’t really like me and left me behind, right?” He nodded. “Well, I’m kinda stuck with them as company for the whole month I’m here.” She made a face and he let a small smile slip. “I would much rather hang out with you, and you’d actually be helping me.” 

She looked around and gestured to them closer. Sam and Lizzy stepped in and she lowered her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. “I run an online fashion company that works with some famous people, and I’m always looking to try new things. I haven’t had the chance to get much practice dressing anyone younger than me, so it’d be a good way to sharpen my skills. I could take you guys to some second-hand stores and show you what kind of fabrics are most durable and warm, and you guys would help me by being my little models.” She smirked at the face Sam pulled at the word “model”, but he seemed to know what her offer would do for him and his sister. He nodded, and stuck out his hand.   
  


Mari beamed at him and firmly shook his hand. “It’s a pleasure doing business with you Mr. Sam,” She turned to Lizzy and shook her hand too. “Miss. Lizzy.” The girl giggled and threw her arms around Mari’s neck.

“Thank you for the food big sister Mari.” Mari clutched the little girl to her and tried to hide the tears that threatened to fall at the endearment. 

“Anytime, little lizard.” She put the girl down and booped her nose, getting another giggle from her. 

She turned to Sam, wanting to hug him as well, but knowing he wouldn’t take kindly to it. “Do you know where the ‘Gotham Suites’ are?” He nodded. “Good, meet me outside tomorrow morning at eight, ok?” He nodded again before tugging on his sister’s hand to drag her off. 

She watched them until they disappeared into the early morning crowd. She sensed Tim’s aura join her just before she lost sight of them. 

“I’m headed to the office now, do you want to walk with me?” She turned to him with a smile, noting that his 30 oz thermos was once again filled to the top.  _ Geez, this guy drinks as much as I do. _

“Sure, I’d love to see their faces when I walk in with the co-CEO.” She smirked at the thought of Lila and Alya’s faces. 

They walked in comfortable silence for a moment before he spoke up.

“It was really nice of you to take care of those kids. You may have grown up in Gotham, but you sure don’t act like it.” He took a big, long pull from his mug and she turned to face the towering building they were headed toward.

“I don’t know - what about Bruce Wayne and the Bats? They’re always working to help… even if they fail sometimes.” She muttered that last part, but he was able to pick it up. He noticed how her eyes had taken on a far away look, and decided not to mention it. 

“True, but they seem to be the exception to the rule, don’t they?” 

“You say ‘they’ as if you’re not a part of them.” She teased, bumping his shoulder. He had a moment of panic before he realized she was referring to being a Wayne. “Besides,” She mused as they passed through Wayne Tower’s front doors. “If these past years under the thumb of Hawkmoth have taught me anything, it’s that the only time evil wins is when you give into the belief that good is outnumbered.” 

“Huh?” Tim stopped walking toward the group of High School aged kids to stare at the tiny Asian girl. “Who is ‘Hawkmoth’?” 

She furrowed her brow. “Oh… I forgot that it isn’t really common knowledge - though I’m surprised that news of an emotional terrorist that’s been holding Paris captive for four years hasn’t gotten out yet.” He just continued to stare, his eyebrows nearly disappearing into his hair. 

She huffed.  _ Me and my big mouth… oh well, I can’t really try and pretend it’s nothing now. _ She mentally shrugged, giving into the feeling that returned full-force, telling her to trust him. She had learned through lessons with Tikki and Wayzz that a part of being a successful guardian was trusting her instincts. 

“Well… he’s got this big, stupid silver mask, has a sidekick named Myura, uses magic, evil butterflies to control anyone who’s having a bad day. He turns them into superpowered puppets and tries to steal the magic jewelry that the heroes Chat Noir and Ladybug carry.” Tim snapped out of his daze. 

“You’re joking, right?”

“Why on earth would I joke about that?” She narrowed her eyes. “You guys have a demented clown, a woman who can supergrow plants and use them as extensions of her own limbs, and an ex-lawyer who decides who to kill with a coin. I understand that magic butterflies aren’t normal for you, but what is?” He took on a pensive look.

“You have a point… but what I can’t believe is that we haven’t heard about it by now…” 

She nodded. “Valid point - but I think the government has been hiding it to keep tourism from stopping.” She fished in her bag, pulling out her phone and clicking around for a bit before handing it over. “Here - this is the first appearance of an akuma.”

He took the device and pressed play - watching in growing shock as a giant rock monster climbed the Eiffel Tower, chucked a blond girl at the watching crowd before being caught by a red and black chick, then he threw up a cloud of… butterflies? Ok… Butterflies that formed a talking head spouting off about miraculous. The red girl from before - Ladybug, she’d said - called him out and caught all the butterflies before releasing them - now white - into the sky. Then she and a cat kid - Chat Noir, apparently - chased the rock guy up the tower where he turned into a rather large kid and dropped the other girl in his hand. The two heros - man, they looked  _ young  _ \- caught the two and Ladybug then threw the parachute that appeared out of nowhere up with a cry and… a tidal wave of ladybugs covered the city - repairing damages until everything looked like new.

When the video ended, he just gaped at the screen until Marinette gently pulled it from his hands. 

“I know it looks odd, and if I didn’t live with it, I wouldn’t believe it either - but he’s real, and that was one of his much milder attacks.” She looked away, obviously remembering something painful. 

“I…I can’t believe that’s actually going on, and I’ve never heard of it before, but I can’t help but believe you Marinette.” He put a hand on her shoulder, and she gave him a small smile.

“MARINETTE!  _ There  _ you are!” A shrill voice called out, and the girl in front of him winced before turning to face the voice. “I can’t  _ believe  _ you’d make a late entrance just for some attention! As if it wasn’t bad enough that you took Lila’s paperwork!” Tim looked over to find a pair of girls stomping over to them. The brunette with strange sausage-like ponytails framing her face behind a redhead with glasses that had obviously been the one to speak. The redhead marched right up to Marinette and grabbed her arm, starting to drag her towards the group, but Tim stopped her.

“Hey, wait a second!” The three turned around, Mari with a resigned, pained look on her face (and he could see why with the way Glasses was digging her nails into Marinette’s arm) and the other two with disdain. 

“Are you who the little whore was  _ entertaining _ ? Well, you’ll just have to wait until the tour is started, we only need the paperwork she stole from Lila.” The second girl sneered with a hateful look at Marinette. 

Marinette for her part, looked tired, and a little sad. This only seemed to anger the girl and she yanked her arm hard to continue to the group, and Mari hissed in a breath. 

Tim had had enough, and he would have intervened sooner, but he was too shocked at the complete 180 the situation had taken. But before he could break the girl’s hold on Mari, another pair of hands had beat him to the punch.

“That is  _ enough _ . We don’t tolerate manhandling in this building, and if you continue to slander your fellow classmates, you will wait on that bench for the three hour tour to be over. Do I make myself clear?” Tim had rarely heard such venom in his older brother’s voice, especially outside the mask. 

As soon as she was released, Marinette retreated to Tim’s side, rubbing her arm and muttering about ‘crazy bitches’. He couldn’t agree more.

“But Mr. Grayson!” Sausage girl simpered, “Marinette did steal the paperwork needed to start the tour - she wants to take all the credit for how much work I put into setting all this up!” The girl then burst into the fakest tears Tim had ever seen. And as both a vigilante and a Wayne, that was quite a feat.

“I have been in near constant contact with Miss Marinette for  _ six months  _ setting this up, and I’ve never heard of a ‘Lila’” Tim spoke loud enough to be heard over the girl’s wailing, and, at his words, she miraculously stopped.

“And you are?” The bespectacled menace asked

“Tim Drake-Wayne, co-CEO of Wayne Enterprises.” He flashed a deadly smile, and the girl paled.

“Ma-Marinette! How  _ could  _ you!” The brunette had fresh tears streaming down her face. “You changed my name on the emails?! I - I just can’t believe that even  _ you  _ would do something so  _ horrible _ .” The girl then buried her face in her hands and tried - and failed - to move her shoulders to imitate sobs. Her friend rushed over and tried to calm her while throwing a vicious glare at Marinette.

Before Tim could argue the ridiculousness of that claim, the teacher came over. 

“Marinette, I expected better of you!” Both Tim and Dick were staring dumbstruck at the woman. “You know how  _ sensitive  _ Lila is, and I expected you to be the example!” She said ‘sensitive’ as if it had another meaning, then turned to the other girls. “Why don’t you two return to the group, now that our paperwork is here, we can get started.” 

“The  _ paperwork _ ?! Madam, I’ve been asking where your missing student is for  _ half an hour _ , and she finally shows up and all you can think of is the  _ paperwork _ ? Do you have any idea where you  _ are _ ?!” Dick was absolutely  _ fuming _ . He might have never actually been this mad before in all his life! This tiny little Asian girl next to his brother couldn’t weigh more than 90 pounds  _ soaking wet _ , and this woman let her wander Gotham alone?!

Before he could continue his rant at the bewildered woman, Marinette cut him off by stepping up with a stack of papers in her hands. “Here are the NDAs Ms Bustier.” She handed them off, and the teacher gave her one last look before returning to the group and handing them over to the front desk. 

Dick watched her go, sluttering. “I… you… she…  _ How _ ?!”

Marinette shrugged. “She’s always been like that, her hands-off approach wasn’t really a problem until Lila transferred in three years ago.” She sighed and absentmindedly rubbed at the raised and angry red claw marks on her arm. “Because I’m the class president, I’m expected to be the example - which basically means if something goes wrong, it’s my fault.” 

“What was that about that Lila girl being “ _ sensitive _ ”?” Tim asked, putting air quotes around the offending word.

“Oh, that,” Mari giggled. “Lila has most of the staff at school convinced that she has a condition that makes her lie.” She rolled her eyes, but the two boys only continued to stare. “Ms Bustier says that letting the others know would deprive Lila of friendships, so no one else in the class but my friend Adrian knows about that particular lie.”

“And… and they  _ believed  _ that?” Tim asked

“Hook, line, and sinker.” Mari quipped. “Lila has this… ability to make nearly anyone believe the most ridiculous of lies. The worst is how little she researches beforehand. Like the newes one, for example - apparently she’s dating Damian Wayne - her loving ‘Damiboo’ - and has known him since they were five. Even I know he came here when he was ten, and I’d left before he got here.” 

Now it was Mari’s turn to stare in confusion as the two boys dissolved into fits of laughter, punctuated by the word “Damiboo”. She then remembered that Tim and Damian were brothers and Lila had said “Mr Grayson”… with how close the two seemed now, it was safe to bet the other man before her was Richard Grayson, the oldest of Bruce Wayne’s boys. Finally catching on, Mari giggled at the thought of the poor boy learning that Lila Rossi was claiming to be his oldest and dearest friend. Poor guy.

“We have  _ got  _ to tell the others.” Dick gasped, clutching his side. 

“Agreed.” Tim nodded, and promptly took out his phone. He and Dick argued over how to word the message for a moment before sending it, and Mari took the opportunity to join her class - at a distance of course. She silently hovered just outside the group of Alex and Kim who were consoling Max over not being able to bring Marcov in for the tour. 

She waited as the frazzled secretary processed their paperwork and Dick started the tour to shoot off a text to her team about what had happened so far that morning. She had promised to keep them updated, and they were fine with her not being able to respond much. She waved to Tim as he entered the elevator, presumably to head up to his office.

The tour went fairly well, even if poor Dick was being ignored for most of it. Mari had taken her sketchbook out and jotted down notes while sketching out Gotham inspired outfits for Lizzy and Sam. She had to make them subtle and unassuming to avoid attention, and it was an interesting challenge for her. She added a variety of hidden pockets and was contemplating what kind of fabric would be the most durable yet warm. Maybe she could ask Tikki about how the magic-weaving spell she’d been working on would affect a material’s warmth. What if she put a layer of kevlar in between some warm layers?...

A deafening crash startled her out of her designing trance, and she looked up to see men with burlap sacks covering their heads enter through the shattered windows.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please leave a comment! I know that it's easy to just jump to the next thing, but it means the world to me!  
> Thank you for reading! <3


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's a short one - and I've been fighting with myself on when to release it. I have six chapters written out and know that if I release them all at once, it'll make it seem like that's the speed at which they'll all come out (and it's not) but I'm so excited to share this with you that this is as long as I could hold off😅 I also know that I left it at a cliff hanger in the last chapter and I have a love/hate relationship with those. As an author it gives me a perverse feeling of power (PoWeR! forgive me a cruel chuckle... mmm power😈) but as a reader, they give me that excited anxiety that makes it hard to think of anything else and I feel kinda bad doing it...  
> Anywho...  
> I do warn you that her Fear Toxin vision and the ensuing fight are a little graphic, so please proceed with caution if you aren't a fan. 
> 
> Enjoy!

Screams rang out as people panicked and tried to flee. The men only seemed interested in her class, though, and focused on rounding them up against a back wall. Marinette watched as Dick shoved some of her classmates behind him and glared at the man that approached leisurely behind the armed goons. 

Scarecrow. Mari had never met him, but that didn’t mean she didn’t have a healthy fear for the man - the little girl from her youth was screaming out at her to not underestimate him or his dreaded toxins. She watched as he stalked back and forth in front of the huddled children, the dark holes in his fitted burlap mask seeming to look into their very souls when they were directed at you. 

Lila was in hysterics, though these seemed real for once, and several of the others were whimpering or crying softly. They were no strangers to fear and up close encounters with villains, but the fact that there was no Ladybug in Gotham seemed to sink into their bones like lead. 

Mari, on the other hand, may not have been currently in her spots, but she was in her Ladybug mindset. 

Thirty-five visible goons plus Scarecrow. No telling if there were any more in another room or waiting outside. 

Dick and Ms Bustier were the only non-goon adults, and her trembling teacher was certainly going to be no help. Dick, on the other hand, looked angry and calculating - she could use that if need be. 

There were two exits on either end of the room, but they were far away - there were also the windows, but they were forty-seven stories up so she wouldn’t survive unless transformed - she filed it away as a last resort. 

Her classmates were little to no help - she couldn’t trust almost any of them to have her back anyway. So, she was outnumbered at least 36 to 1 with one possible ally and a class full of mindless sheep to protect. 

Great. 

Her only plan was to run interference if need be and play the waiting game until the Bat and his crew showed.

“I’ve heard a very interesting rumor about the City of Love…” Scarecrow’s words snapped her mind back to the present - watching as he continued to pace in front of them like an antsy predator. “A little…  _ Moth, _ ” The entire class flinched. “Told me that you all understand fear in a way I’d never seen before.” He cackled, and Mari felt as if ice water had been dumped down her spine. 

HawkMoth had contacted a villain in Gotham. 

He’d sent Scarecrow after her class.

Why? 

What would he gain out of it? As a poor match for little Noroo, his reach didn’t even extend to the edges of the city, let alone to another continent - so he couldn’t akumatize anyone here... Mari’s mind was swirling, and she barely paid attention to the man’s next words.

“I’d like to see how such… unique specimens react to my latest batch of toxin.” The fear in the room went up a few more notches as he perused them like he was at a candy store. He stopped and leaned in in front of where Ivan was trying to stand tall. Dick moved to slide in and block the villain's view, a defiant snarl on his face. 

“That one.” Scarecrow mused, ignoring Dick and pointing at Maylene who was trying to hide behind her boyfriend. Three men came forward and wrestled Dick to the ground while another two grabbed the shaking girl from Ivan’s grip. He tried to fight them off, but was knocked harshly away with the butt of a gun and receiving a nasty gash over his eye. 

Mari frantically searched for a way out, but nothing was coming to her. She watched in horror as Myleene was made to kneel before Scarecrow as he brought out a needle filled with a green liquid that nearly glowed. Her instincs were screaming at her to get out and as far away from that stuff as she could, but the look on her sweet classmate’s face made her make a very dumb move.

“WAIT!” Everyone paused to look at her as she stepped away from the group to line up with the wall of guards, and she locked eyes with Dick for a moment. His face was bloody and pressed into the floor - he shook his head ever so slightly, but she shifted her gaze to Mayleen and said - “I...I’ll do it. Let her go and I’ll do it.”

Scarecrow seemed to stare at her for a moment before bursting into a fit of horrid, hacking laughter. “You know what girlie? I think I’ll take you up on that - there’s nothing better than breaking a strong spirit. You remind me of The Bat's little Robin brats.” Mari’s look darkened at the mention of the mantle her brother once carried.

“Ooh! A scary look!” His voice was gleeful as he waved her forward and kicked Maylene away - she scrambled over to Ivan and they embraced. “Are you a Robin fan?” He cackled again and grabbed her by the hair when she was close enough (of course she just had to leave it down today of all days). “Can I tell you a secret girlie?” He pulled her closer to him, the sewn mouth opening right next to her ear so she could smell the odd chemical scent that he seemed to be soaked into his clothes. “The Robins are my  _ favorite _ too. Let see if you can scream like one.” And with that he roughly plunged the needle into her neck and her vision faded.

She woke in a dark room. 

There were metal pipes above and the graded metal floor digging into her cheek showed that she was suspended high above the ground below. The platform she was on was wide and there were hundreds white butterflies hovering around or resting on a surface. She felt something grab her hair, and noticed when her hands came up to grab at the arm connected to the hand in her hair that she was currently Ladybug. The hand harshly turned her to face the man she had seen in person on only a few occasions. 

“HawkMoth.” She spat at him, and he threw her to the floor. She rolled a few times before being stopped with her back pressed against something, and butterflies scattered like dust upon the impact. She was dazed for a moment, before she turned over to see the dull eyes of Chat Noir looking sightlessly into the distance, his body bloody and bent awkwardly. 

“NO!” She scrambled up, and tried to reach out to him, but he dissolved into yet more butterflies. “CHAT! NO!”

She shot to her feet only to find all of her friends that had once held a miraculous surrounding her in the same state as Chat. Lifeless. Gone.

Everywhere she looked - dead friends. Dead allies. People SHE’D chosen. This was HER fault. 

When her knees hit the floor - all the bodies simultaneously burst into a thick cloud of butterflies, making it impossible to see anything beyond the wall of white wings. The sound was eerie. 

As they cleared, she saw the worst sight yet. Jason. Her big brother. Looking just as she saw him last. In his Robin outfit and mangled after the blast that took him from her. 

“JASON!” She screamed, surprised that her voice didn’t break at that volume. “JANSON! PLEASE NO! NO, DON’T LEAVE ME! NOT AGAIN!” She stumbled to him, only to have him also disappear in a cloud of innocent butterflies just before she could reach him. A strangled cry was ripped from her. 

“Now, you sad excuse for a hero, hand over the miraculous, and I’ll let you join them.” She spun around to see an odd sight. Hawkmoth stood a few feet away with a triumphant grin, but then his appearance flickered to that of the Joker. His shock of green hair and pale white skin framing the trademark maniacal grin. He cackled at her.

“I killed your pathetic brother, girlie, and I’m gonna do the same to you - I could even find a nice little pipe bomb if you’re feeling nostalgic!” He threw his head back and laughed, his image flicking once again to Hawkmoth, and then back to Joker. Each man laughing and spewing taunts about her. Her team. Her brother. 

Rage like she’d never known boiled up inside, and with a battle cry, she launched herself at the still shifting man. This time, she was able to make contact - no butterflies. In fact, they all seemed to have disappeared. The man beneath her continued to shift and spout nonsense about those she held dear, but the rushing in her ears drowned him out. She continued to beat him/them until she was yanked harshly off.

Looking behind her, she saw Myura and turned her attack on the blue skinned woman. After she was down, a clown masked goon tried to put her in a choke hold, but she threw him over her shoulder and grabbed his hair to bring his head down and smash it against the floor. More goons and multiple Myaura’s were coming at her all at once, and she fought each off in a craze. Some of the bullets sent her way by the goon’s guns hit, but they only seemed to fuel her fire. She continued to battle them, cursing and screeching at them all the while, ignoring the accumulating bruises, gashes, and bullet wounds. 

There was a long pause before two more goons showed up, and by that point, she was running on empty. She lowered her stance and spat out a mouthful of blood before making a “come here” motion. They shared a glance before rushing her, managing to pin her - though not before she got a few good hits in - and then there was a sharp prick in her arm. She fought for as long as she could hold out - her struggles growing weaker - before losing consciousness.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Also, just figured out how to do italics and bold on this site (switch it to "Rich Text" as opposed to "HTML"🤦...)  
> Did I ever mention that I'm like a 50 year old woman with tech?😅🙄😂


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ok, I give up - I have no self control, and this story will not have a set time for chapter releases - you're all amazing, and your love is addicting. Lilly_Young, you broke me - I would make a terrible mother as I gave in even without puppy-eyes🤦♀️
> 
> Seriously though - I've tried fic writing before and I don't know if it's ao3 or this tag (or I just got beyond blessed with you lot), but the outpouring of support is far and away beyond what I expected. I'm so glad I gave into this particular fic bug😉

Dick had his phone out before anyone really registered the windows breaking. When he saw the goons’ telling masks, he sent out a quick text to the family group chat and activated the tracker / audio link to the coms Tim had installed in his watch. 

**NightDick** : Scarecrow. 47th floor. At least 30. Armed.

He started to try herding the tour group out, but was instantly boxed in on both sides. The goons didn’t seem to be paying the WE employees any attention. 

“Looks like he’s after the French class.” He growled low enough that only the watch near his mouth would pick it up.

He looked around, doing a quick head count - noting Marinette at the edge of the group analyzing the situation, calm where her fellow classmates were nearing full-blown panic. He’ll have to keep an eye on her to make sure she doesn’t pull anything, but she doesn’t seem like the reckless type.

His attention was torn from the girl as Scarecrow made his appearance. He started spouting something about a moth (that got an odd reaction - he’ll look into that later) and testing out his new batch of toxin. 

As his eyes wandered over the class, Dick tensed when they stopped about five feet from where he was. He moved quickly and tried to cut off the villain's line of sight to whoever he’d decided on, but it was as if he wasn’t there. Rude.

“That one.” Dick tensed, ready to fight off anyone coming for these kids (even if some of them seemed like they could use a swift kick in the teeth), but it seemed the goons were ready for him. He had to fight them without giving away too much of his training - and that was his downfall. They had him on the ground embarrassingly quickly - his nose and the gash near his hairline leaking hot blood onto the floor until he could see a small puddle forming in the corner of his vision. He watched as they grabbed a stout girl with dreadlocks, and bashed the head of the boy - likely her boyfriend by how they were reacting - with the butt of a gun. Dick winced in sympathy.

He wriggled his wrist out from under him so the audio from his watch wasn’t muffled, and watched helplessly through the line of legs of the hired muscle in front of him as the sobbing girl was shoved to a kneeling position in front of Scarecrow as he pulled out a needle full of his toxin.

“WAIT!” 

Dick snapped his gaze over to Marinette as she rushed up to the barrier the goons created, though they surprisingly didn’t shove her back. What was she doing?

Her eyes found his, and the look in them was one he was all too familiar with - his brothers had that look way too often. She was going to do something stupid. 

He tried to shake his head at her as well as he could with the hand holding his head down, but her eyes left his. DAMN IT.

He started to wriggle more earnestly now, and he heard her offering herself up. Shit, shit, shit! Doesn’t she know anything! Don’t interact! Don’t play hero! Gotham villains love to torture heros - he should know!

The goon holding his head brought a fist down on his temple and he saw stars. They started to clear, and he caught sight of the girl with dreadlocks returning to the arms of her boyfriend.   
  
Dick turned to look at Mari, and watched as she scowled at the mention of torturing Robins - not all that surprising as Tim said she was from Gotham and the Robins were loved by everyone. 

Scarecrow grabbed her hair and whispered something to her before plunging the needle in. 

“NO!” Dick struggled more, managing to get a hand free to reach up and break the thumb of the guy grinding his sore head into the marble. He backed off with a screech - and Dick used the distraction to wriggle out from under the other two with a few well-placed blows. He danced out of their reach and put the class at his back. They were about to face off when an unholy scream distracted them. 

“NO!” Marinette was on the ground - Scarecrow must have released her or tossed her once the drug began to take effect. “CHAT! NO!”

She was reaching for something in front of her, only to stop with a choked sob. She got up and looked around her on the floor with horrified eyes, muttering about “my fault” before collapsing again. She didn’t seem to be looking at anything for a moment, and then her face contorted worse than before. 

“JASON!” She screamed, somehow even louder than before, and Dick jumped at his brother’s (admittedly common) name. “JANSON! PLEASE NO! NO, DON’T LEAVE ME! NOT AGAIN!” 

She ran/crawled over reaching out, only to stop short once again. A pitiful cry sounded as she slumped forward.

“HA HA.” Scarecrow threw back his head with a belly laugh. “I must say, you’re just as fun as any of the little birdies - I can’t wait to see how the rest of you fare.” He turned to the class, and they all shrunk back further, their eyes flitting back and forth between their classmate and the man. 

Dick turned his attention back to the goons ahead of him, and renewed his defensive stance, glaring at them for all he was worth. He felt his watch buzz and grinned. Five minutes out. 

Scarecrow turned back to the girl on the floor. “Now tell old Scarecrow what you see, hm? Who’s this “Jason”? An old boyfriend, a family member? Did he abandon you? Leave you to rot?” The man cackled again, missing the change in Marinette’s eyes. Dick flinched at the severity of the look. She was livid. 

He watched in horrified awe as she released a feral cry and launched herself at Scarecrow. He wasn’t prepared for her attack, let alone the strength she seemed to possess. For such a tiny thing, she wasn’t anything to scoff at. Dick and the armed men stared at her for a moment - not able to react as she absolutely pummeled the face behind the sewn sack. He was obviously unconscious at this point, and that seemed to wake his men up. 

One of the goons rushed toward her as the three in front of Dick moved in towards him and he prepared for a fight - the other men seemed content to watch for any others in the class making a scene. 

Not a minute later shots rang out, and Dick looked over to see five men on the floor, knocked out (he hoped) and the tiny Asian girl as she flew around, ignoring the hits she took (thankfully, it seemed that the guns were loaded with toxin pellets rather than bullets, but with how much she had initially taken, that wasn’t necessarily a good thing.)

Batman, Red Robin, Black Bat, and Robin decided then would be the time to burst in, and they all paused at the sight, before prioritizing getting the rest of the students out and taking care of the goons not already at Dick’s or the girl’s feet. It took little to no time, and once the room was cleared, they all backed up to discuss what to do. 

“Who is that girl?” Batman lowered his voice so as not to set her off again, she was obviously in need of medical attention, but her stance and wary gaze said she was still in battle mode.

“Marinette Dupain-Chang. She’s the president of the class from France. She volunteered to take a classmate’s place when Scarecrow was about to inject them. Something she saw set her off, and she attacked Scarecrow, bashing his face until after he was unconscious, and then she fought off, like half of the goons.” They all turned to look at the girl that couldn’t be any older than Damian, and looked to be a third of his size. 

“We need to get her the antidote - she’s got too much in her system.” Red Robin murmured, looking worriedly at the puncture wounds from the toxin bullets. They may not penetrate as deeply as a real bullet, but they were sure to leave scars - beyond the mental ones that come with Scarecrow’s fear toxin. 

“Robin. Red Robin. Pin her down and administer the antidote. Dick, get a medical team up here to transport her to the hospital once she’s out.” Dick nodded and raced off. “Black Bat will sweep for any additional men or traps.” She gave a brief nod and headed for the windows. “I will back you two up if needed and take Scarecrow to the police once she’s sedated. I’ll also send in men to gather the rest of his gang after she’s taken care of.” The remaining vigilantes nodded at him and slowly began to approach the girl. 

A piece of glass crumbled under Red Robin’s foot, and her head snapped over to them. They watched as she lowered her stance to steady herself in her tired state, and motioned at them with a “come at me” gesture. They looked at one another warily - Who is this chick? - before nodding to each other and rushing her. 

It took longer than they’d like to admit to pin her - even with how tired and injured she was - and she fought the sedative for as long as she could before passing out. 

They sighed and got off of her just as a med team and Dick entered with a stretcher.

“What happened?” Dick whispered to them as the two EMTs loaded her onto the stretcher. “You didn’t look this bad when I left.”

Robin grunted and pointed at the girl. 

“She did that?! She was still able to do that to you two after getting beat to hell?! Who is this kid?” 

“Of course she did it! Do you see anyone new in the room?” Robin groused, never taking his eye off the tiny Asian body as it lay supine after being strapped onto the now raised stretcher. He knew an experienced fighter when he saw one, and no one gets that good from simple classes, or even the occasional mugging. She was as good as they were, and they fought crime nightly.

Who was she indeed. 


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ok- so I really hope that you all don't hate it when the chapter releases slow down - but this has been ready almost since I posted the first chapter, and a lot of you have been really wanting the chapter where Jason gets to know what happened... Let just say, I'm excited to share 😁
> 
> As is almost mandatory when writing Jason Todd - there is a fair amount of swearing, and you all should be warned. It's not excessive (in my opinion) and I've even censored the f-bombs - but just so you know, I kept his cannon potty mouth. You have been warned. 
> 
> Also! A big thank you to the lovely Miss clary_asryver for agreeing to be my beta reader! It's wonderful to have a second pair of eyes on this and reassure me that it's not horrid😅😂 (I have that artist/writer problem where the more you look at something you made, the worse it gets🤣)
> 
> Enjoy! 😘🥰

Jason Todd was in a mood. 

Which isn’t to say that it was all that unusual - he was always in a mood. 

But he had just woke up to find that there was a Scarecrow break-in at the WE building, and he’d missed watching an apparently tiny French girl beat the shit out of Scarecrow, a fair amount of his goons,  _ and  _ get some good hits on two of his brothers before having to be knocked out. Suffice it to say, he was pissed he’d missed the fight of the century. 

At least there was footage, and he was going to get a copy downloaded before the Replacement or Demon Spawn had the chance to erase it. 

He grabbed a plate of cookies from the kitchen and wandered down to the Cave, an evil glint in his eye. 

Those two were never gonna live this down. 

He stuffed a cookie in his mouth, and started going through the cameras on the 47th floor of the tower. 

_ Why are there so many damn conference rooms on this stupid floor? _ He scowled and stuffed another cookie in, leaving half hanging out of his mouth.  _ No, no, no, no… Ah ha! There it is! _

He grinned, rewinding the tape to just before the French group walked in with Dick, making sure that the audio from the building and the one provided by Dick were combined to get a better idea of what was being said.

He watched the reinforced windows shatter under the force of what he assumed were small, controlled explosives, ( _ that reminds me, I need to stock up on those… _ he mused) and thirty five guys entered before the man himself. They obviously were targeting the class for some reason, and didn’t spare anyone else a glance. 

He narrowed his eyes at a small black-haired girl off to the side of the group - she wasn’t reacting how he’d expected. The picture wasn’t good enough for a clear image (Wayne Enterprises or not, it was still security footage) but she seemed to be analyzing the situation rather than freaking out. Besides that, there was something familiar about the little pixelated figure… 

He shook his head and munched on the rest of the cookie in his mouth as a girl was dragged out after Dick and the boy trying to protect her were incapacitated. He narrowed his eyes at the little Asian/French girl as she offered to replace the one singled out.  _ That’s odd.. she  _ sounds  _ familiar too… _

His forehead creased further and further as the scene played out, a third cookie halfway to his mouth, but completely forgotten at this point. 

He winced as she was grabbed by her hair, and had the needle roughly shoved into her neck. 

“Master Jason,” He vaguely heard Alfred sigh behind him. “How many times must you be told not to eat while using the Bat computer?” He could tell the butler was right behind him, waiting for a reply, but he couldn’t answer - a heavy dread was beginning to settle into his stomach. 

_ I know her. _

He searched his mind desperately for her face - even trying to pull up the painful half-there memories from his time with the League of Assassins just after the pit. 

When she screamed his name, a face snapped to the forefront of his mind and he drew in a sharp, painful breath. 

“ _ Pixie… _ ?” He didn’t realize he was crying until the drops hit his hand - the crushed cookie crumbing onto his lap and the floor. 

“Master Jason?...” He barely registered the hand on his shoulder. “Are you well?”

Getting no answer, the butler shifted and stepped away, pulling out his phone and speaking lowly to whoever was on the other end. 

Jason’s gaze was glued to the screen as his baby sister absolutely  _ thrashed  _ Scarecrow and his goons, and put up a damn good fight against Tim and Damian. He recognized some of the moves he taught her, but she was nowhere  _ near  _ this good ten years ago. He knew, just as Damian had, this wasn’t the result of simple martial arts classes. His little Pixie had somehow gained  _ battle experience _ .

_ What the hell had happened to his sister?  _ Last he’d heard, she was adopted and living with a nice couple in France.  _ Paris was relatively safe - why would she need to know this?  _ **How** _ had she learned this? Who taught her?...  _

His mind swirled as his sister’s tiny body was loaded onto a stretcher. 

As soon as she was out of the camera's view - he bolted from the chair and up the stairs. He barely heard Alfred’s call as he raced to the garage. He slammed his helmet onto his head and revved up his bike - leaving behind a large black line of rubber on the pristine concrete floor. 

The sensors on the driveway barely had time to open the gate - and he nearly clipped his shoulder, leaving a piece of his favorite jacket behind. 

He hardly registered anyone else on the road as he pushed the bike to its limits. He swerved around cars, ran red lights, and even used the sidewalk a couple times. He heard a cop start to follow at one point, but quickly lost them in his mad dash. 

He didn’t even bother stopping the bike at the front of the hospital - jumping ship and landing in a roll just before it crashed into a bush. 

He ignored all the staff and security that tried to get his attention, and stormed up to the front desk. 

“MARRIANNE TODD - WHERE IS SHE?!” The poor woman looked like she was about to wet herself, but he couldn’t care less. He slammed his hands on the desk and leaned in closer. “MY BABY SISTER WAS ATTACKED BY THE F*CKING SCARECROW AND WAS JUST BROUGHT IN. YOU TELL ME WHERE YOU PUT HER  _ NOW  _ OR I’LL -” 

He was grabbed from behind by two sets of arms and he fought to throw them off with all his might.    
  
“GET OFF OF ME YOU BASTARDS!” 

“TODD!” He registered the Demon Spawn’s voice and turned his head to snarl at him. The boy actually looked surprised for a moment before his usual scowl was back. “Get ahold of yourself!” 

Damian and Dick wrestled Jason into an empty break room as he writhed, kicked, and screamed curses at them. They shoved him in, locked the door, and barred his exit. 

“LET ME THROUGH F*CKERS! I NEED TO SEE HER!” He snarled and tried to deck Dick (ha), but his arm was grabbed and twisted into a hold behind his back by the youngest of his captors instead. 

Dick then walked around to get into his face. 

“Now - we aren’t letting you out till you explain what the hell is going on Jaybird - Alfred called and warned us you were probably on your way, but didn’t say why.” He searched his brother’s eyes, trying to see what he was hiding. 

Jason struggled for a few more minutes, before slumping forward and taking a few deep breaths. 

“Please…” he whispered, and the other two gaped at him. “Please at least tell me she’s gonna be ok.” 

“The little French girl? How do you know Marinette?” Jason sighed and shook off Damian, before going to sit down. He bent nearly in half and rested his head in his hands. 

“Before anything else - please just tell me she’s ok” Dick and Damian looked at each other, before Dick walked over and set a hand on Jason’s shoulder. 

“She’ll be fine. She’s got some broken ribs, split knuckles, and one hell of a shiner - plus all the cuts, shallow wounds from the toxin-bullets, and she’s covered in bruises… But she won’t have any that lasts other than scars.” Dick chuckled. “She sure got out of it better than almost anyone she went up against.” Damian grunted in agreement as he took a seat.

Jason gave a weak laugh. “Yeah, I saw the security tapes… She always was a scrapper - even if she’d rather not fight.” The other two shared a confused look and Jason sighed.

“I know she goes by Marinette Dupain-Cheng now, but when I met her, she was Marianne - or Mary - Johnson. She’s my baby sister.” He leaned back - ignoring their shocked looks, and running his hands through his messy hair. 

“I was about ten, and was walking fire escapes to see if anyone had left their windows open when they went out. Heard this awful screaming and the sound of glass being thrown around a few floors down from where I was, so I thought it might be best to just try another building.”

“Then I heard some sniffling and looked down to see the tiniest little girl I’d ever seen all curled up in a corner of the fire escape, trying to cover her ears to block out the sound of her folks going at it.” He started to fiddle with his fingers, his eyes looking off into the distance, lost in the memory.

“I don't know why I felt so drawn to her - I’d seen plenty of kids with shitty parents, plenty more without any at all, but she was so small and I… there was this feeling I couldn’t explain that said she was meant to be my little sister and I needed to protect her.” He shook his head with a small, disbelieving exhale of air. “I swear that little Pixie put a spell on me.”

“Anyway - I went down to her and tried to calm her down. I started off real slow and quiet so as to not spook her, but she just jumped right into my arms and snuggled in. We sat there for a while until her parent’s shouts died out - they didn’t even come look for her! - and I didn’t even think - I asked if she wanted to come with me and be my sister.” He smiled fondly at the memory. 

“She didn’t even hesitate… She never really said how bad it was with her folks, but with how happy she was living on the street with me, and the nightmares... I can make a pretty good guess.” He scowled.

“We had an abandoned apartment we mainly stayed in with a few other meeting places or crash pads. We were a part of a group of street kids that all took care of each other - and Pixie was like the mother hen. She was great at cooking and bandaging us up - she was always scolding me after a fight.” He laughed softly.

“Pixie?” Dick asked.

“Yeah, that’s what I called her most of the time - she seemed to prefer it to Mary, though she always played at being annoyed… It just fit her. She called me Jay-Jay” He shifted a bit looking at the clock, and then the door.

“We’ve asked to be notified via text when she is ready for visitors.” Damian assured him, placing his phone face up on the coffee table so any incoming texts would be visible to everyone in the room. 

Jason nodded in thanks, and started in on his story again.

“There were a few times that she got picked up by the GCPD or CPS - they’d put her in the system and ship her off to a foster home, but it wasn’t hard to find her. The street kids know that it’s a one in a million chance to get a good foster place in Gotham, so there’s a sort of spy network to keep track of where kids are taken so their group can get them out. She was never in a place more than three weeks… until they decided to ship her out to f*ckin’ Metropolis.” He growled. 

“No one knew where she was! There was no street-kid-grape-vine outside the city - the most I could get out of anyone was that the damn car they put her in was headed South…” He started to pull at his hair, remembering the frustration and desperation he’d felt. “That’s… actually what led me to trying to grab something off of the Batmobile - I was saving up to hire a private investigator and knew that anything off of that car - even a hubcap - would help me find her that much faster.”

“But you got caught.” Dick breathed, deeply invested at this point. 

“Yeah Dicky-Bird - I got caught.” He let out a long sigh before continuing. “B was looking for your replacement, and apparently the bar wasn’t set very high.” He smirked at his older brother, who returned it with a roll of his eyes. 

“Why did you agree to be Robin if you had another mission?” Damian furrowed his brow. “Or why not ask for father’s help in locating her - you knew, even then, that he was fond of taking in dark-haired strays.” Jason shot him a small glare before answering.

“I didn’t want to drag her into the whole “Batman” shitshow! I just… I knew her well enough that if she knew what I was doing at night, she’d want to be out doing it right along with me - to keep an eye on me. And I know that it should have been her choice, but I was also having a hard time trusting Bruce enough to tell him - Pixie was kind of my secret -  _ my  _ responsibility - and I felt the best way to keep her safe was to keep Batman out of it.” Obviously getting antsy, he got up and started to pace.

“B was givin’ me an allowance that helped me to get the resources I needed to track her down - I refused to look up her name on the Bat computer or even on the one in my room in case B caught on and looked into it further… so I did all my research on a library computer. I figured out she was in Metropolis, and under a new name - but they kept f*ckin’ bouncing her around from one place to another, and I never pinned her down before she was gone again. I had finally decided to just grab a damn bus out there and track her down on foot, but then…” He sighed, dropping back into his chair. “The whole thing with my bio mom and the Joker happened.”

Dick and Damian flinched at the clown’s name, neither having had any pleasant experiences with the psycho. 

“He… he had her and my mom in that warehouse.” Jason choked, burying his face in his hands, but leaving his mouth clear so they could understand him.

“I think she had finally decided to just come and find me herself - I had always told her to wait for me to come get her ‘cause I didn’t want her to get caught and have one of the families decide to ‘punish’ her like I’d heard they sometimes did to others… But she’d apparently been wandering the town and trying to find me. Problem is - Joker was also lookin’ for me and heard that my baby sister was out on her own asking if anyone knew where I was...” He shuddered. 

“I don’t know what he did to her, but she was hurt when I got to the warehouse, and he dragged her off rather than leave her with me and my ‘mother’.” His voice had gotten progressively quieter, and the two brothers had to lean in to hear. 

“After the whole “Lazarus pit” fiasco, I tried to hunt her down, praying she wasn’t dead or still with the clown like another Harley or something.” They all shuddered at that particular thought. 

“Turns out, she escaped from him that same night, and when the cops picked her up, they decided to send her to Paris... I looked into the couple who had adopted her, and they seemed like great people, they owned a bakery, and their records were squeaky clean, so… I decided that it would be best if I just stayed dead and out of her life.” He stared at the floor for another minute or two before looking up. 

Dick looked like his heart was breaking for his brother, and he set a solemn hand on his shoulder. “I… I’m sorry I never knew… I’m sorry you had to bear this alone and that you felt like you had to stay away.” Jason just nodded, his eyes returning to the floor to hide how red they were.

“What I don’t get,” Damian mused. “Is where she learned to fight. Sure, I saw some basic street moves in there - but that was such a small part of it. There was a large variety of fighting disciplines that she used - quite a bit looked Amazonian - and there were even one or two that even I didn’t recognize.” He set his chin on top of his threaded fingers and quirked an eyebrow at the other two. 

Jason sat up again and ran his hand through his hair (it was nearly a nest at this point). “That’s what has me really worried, Demon Spawn - She fights like one of us, and I can’t for the life of me figure out why.” He ran his hands roughly down his face, leaving behind red lines. 

“I stayed away to keep her out of this f*cking life! If she’s been through anywhere near  _ half  _ as much shit as I have, then I did it all for nothing! It would have been better to have her at my side so I could protect her like I’m f*ckin’ supposed to!” He shot up and started pacing again. 

Just then, the phone Damian had left on the table chimed, and Jason snatched it up before the others could see what was on it. 

“Hey!” Damian protested, but he didn’t move to take the device, sensing the tension rolling off his brother.

“They’re letting visitors in.” He said, throwing the phone at Damian before shooting out of the room - his brothers on his heels - and they were soon being led back to her room.

Jason was fidgeting behind the nurse leading them to the room - suddenly very nervous at the prospect of seeing her again after all these years.

The man in light green scrubs stopped in front of a door and turned back to them. 

“She’ll probably be out for a while yet, and when she does wake up, be careful not to spook her - there’s still some toxin in her system. Press the button to the right of her bed if she starts to show signs of a panic attack or chills… We were having a hard time keeping her temperature up for a bit - so she has a few extra blankets on - keep an eye on the temperature reading while you’re in there. There’ll be an hourly check in about 45 minutes.” Jason nodded numbly, and the nurse left them to stand outside the door. 

“Well, aren’t you going to open it?” Jason could hear Dick hitting the back of Damian’s head for the comment.

“We can wait outside if you want, little wing.” Dick placed a hand on Jason’s shoulder and he took a deep breath - drawing strength from the touch. 

“It’s ok - she won’t be awake anyway, and the idea of suddenly being alone with her is…” He trailed off. He wasn’t totally sure why he was hesitating. 

“Alright. We’ll follow you in and keep you company.” Jason nodded without looking at his brothers. He took another deep breath before opening the door. 

The faint beeping of a heart monitor greeted them as they entered, and Jason drew in a breath at the sight of his tiny little sister all bruised and battered - lying on a bed and hooked up to a few machines.

“Pixie…” He murmured and strode to the bed. He gingerly picked up her hand and was shocked at all the calluses he felt. 

He sat in a chair at her side, and pulled her hand up to rest it against his forehead. 

“I’m here, Pix, and I’m so sorry it took this long to come to you… I knew where you were, but I… I couldn’t bring myself to drag you into my life.” He felt a few warm drops hit his arm and sniffed. 

“It kinda fell apart without you, baby sis.” He released a wet chuckle and trailed off, taking the time to study her face and take note of all the changes the years had brought on.

He heard his brothers settle in behind him and was glad of their presence. With them near, he could let his guard down and release all the tears he’d been holding in since he woke up in that damn pit without knowing if she was even alive.


	6. Chapter 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Ok - so when I first started this, I was in the midst of a unfortunately common bout of my chronic illness that tends to leave me basically bed-ridden, so I was much more active in writing and posting.😅 I promise that this is still on my radar - but I also have a full-time job and some classes that take up my time. 
> 
> Anyway, here's the next chapter!😁

Marinette woke up with a dry mouth and a splitting headache. 

She could tell by the odd beeping, and scratchy sheets that she wasn’t in her room, so she tried to even out her breathing and strained her ears to try and get a sense of where she was. 

The first thing she realized was that she was  _ freezing _ . 

She tried to hold off on it notifying the owners of the voices who were murmuring not far away - but, despite being the holder of the jewels that embodied luck itself, she wasn’t so lucky. She couldn’t control the shivers that rolled off her in waves - and her teeth started to chatter, giving away the fact that she was awake to whoever may have been in the room. 

Her cover blown, she tried to open one eye (the one that  _ wasn’t  _ throbbing like it was trying to jump out of her damn face) and immediately regretted it. She let out a pitiful groan as the white burned her eyes, and her instinct to scrunch them both closed bothered her injured one. 

There was the sound of a muffled curse, shuffling, and then a warm hand was resting on her forehead, stroking her bangs out of the way. She tried to shift into a sitting position, but a hand stopped her. 

“Don’t even  _ think  _ about moving, Pixie-Pop.” Marinette froze - even her shivering stopped in her shock - and so did the hand on her head. 

She held her breath for a moment, before forcing her eyes open. She squinted past the painful bright white and throbbing pains, and waited until everything started to focus. 

There was a man looking at her anxiously - he had wild dark hair with a white streak that looked like it’d been through a hurricane. His eyes were bloodshot and red-rimmed - and achingly familiar. He had five O’clock shadow, and there were scars littered all over his face - some small, some bigger, some seemed new, whereas others were familiar - she could even see slight evidence of a younger-her’s clumsy stitching on a few.

She slowly reached out a trembling hand to touch the side of his face and gasped when it actually made contact. 

He moved the hand on her forehead to cover the one on his face, and reached up with the other to wipe at the tears she didn’t notice streaming down her face. 

“J…  _ Jay-Jay _ ?” She croaked, her voice strained and sore. She was too far gone in her shock to notice the strange feeling of  _ ‘bad’  _ that seemed to cling to him. 

“Yeah… it’s me, Pixie - I’m here.” His own eyes were watering and she lifted her free hand to wipe at his cheek when they fell.

“But… I thought… I  **_saw_ ** …” Her voice caught and she started to sob, ignoring the pain and throwing her arms around his neck. “I  _ saw  _ the warehouse explode! I saw Batman carry you out! You.. you were… you looked...” She choked, and couldn’t get anything more out. 

Jason gingerly shifted them so she was in his lap, and she immediately curled into his chest, her hands clutching at his shirt as she soaked it. “I was, Pixie, I was. But I’m not anymore, and I’m never leaving you again - Ya hear?” He rubbed her back as he murmured into her hair. “I… I thought you’d be better off with your new family, so I left you alone, but now that you’re here, I can’t - won’t - let you go.” He clutched her to him as tight as he dared.

Neither of them noticed the door closing behind the other two who had occupied the room, and they only released each other when a nurse came in screeching about them agitating her wounds. Jason reluctantly got off the bed, but Mari outright  _ refused  _ to release his hand - forcing the nurse to work around him. 

She checked all the bandages and tutted at a few, but said she was fine - and doing remarkably well. She said that the Dr. needed to look her over one last time, and they needed another blood sample to be sure the rest of the fear toxin was out of her system, but she could probably leave in about an hour. 

Marinette frowned at the thought of returning to the hotel without Jason, but he squeezed her hand reassuringly - knowing what she was thinking. He didn’t care if he had to kidnap her and hide out in one of his safe houses, he wasn’t leaving her side for a  _ damn thing _ . 

The nurse left after getting another blood sample and piling on another  _ three  _ blankets when her shivering returned full force. The Dr. came half an hour later to check her over. He was as surprised as the nurse at how well she was doing, and Mari gave a nervous laugh, avoiding their eyes. Jason squinted at her and she winced. She always was awful with secrets - especially when it came to keeping them from him.

The blood test results came back with minimal toxin left and the Dr. released her with a warning about panic attacks and nightmares.

Just what she needed.

Jason was helping her to sign out when Damian and Dick strolled in through the front doors.

“H-hey Dick.” She awkwardly waved at him, expecting a scolding. She was surprised she hadn’t got one from Jason yet, but wasn’t dumb enough to believe it wasn’t coming. She glanced at the new face, but Dick’s words took her attention.

“You nearly gave me a heart attack!” Dick cried as he pulled her into a gentle hug - only to be shoved off by Jason.

“Watch it, Dickhead - she’s still hurt.” Dick pouted, but didn’t move to hug her again, and Mari shot a suspicious look between them.

“You two know each other?” She asked, cocking her head to the side. Then it clicked - her brother was a  _ Wayne _ .

“Yeah… You remember how Bruce Wayne adopted me while you were in Metropolis?” She nodded - allowing him to explain. “Well, it turns out that the guy has a serious problem, and I was only the second adoption of… what are we on now, Dicky-boy?”

Dick scrunched up his nose in thought.

“Legally adopted four, one biological, and an abhorrent amount of honoraries.” The boy at Dick’s side cut in with a roll of his eyes. He looked her over with an analyzing look. “I’m Damian, by the way - the youngest, and only blood son of Bruce Wayne.”

Mari’s eyes bulged at the number of siblings her brother had - and they all laughed - Damian giving a light chuckle. 

“You have  _ no  _ idea.” Jason snarked. He paused, “Speaking of - do you think we can get B to let her stay at the manor?”

“Wayyy ahead of you, Jay-bird.” Dick grinned, leading them out to the front where a limo was waiting with an older gentleman holding the door open to the back.

“Alfred! Should’ve known you’d come through!” Jason crowed, grinning like a fool. “Come on Pixie! You’ve got to meet the others - this is Alfred Pennyworth!” He pulled her gently up to “Alfred” and she gave a small wave.

“It’s lovely to meet you Miss Dupain-Cheng.” The man gave a small bow with a kind smile. She felt a spark jump from the British gentleman to her, and faltered for a moment before shaking it off and pulling herself together. 

“Oh! Please call me Marinette, Mr. Pennyworth, sir! My adopted name is such a mouthful!” She giggled nervously, and Alfred chuckled.

“Then you must call me Alfred, Miss Marinette.” He winked at her as Jason prodded at her to enter the car, and she slid into the nicest limo she’d ever been in - and with Adrien, Chloe, and Kagami as friends, that’s saying something!

Once Dick and Damian had settled in, the car started moving, and they were off to Wayne Manor.

“By the way Jason,” Dick started, “Your bike is back in the garage - but it’s a little worse for wear.” He finished teasingly and Jason cleared his throat. 

“Um… Thanks.” Mari shot him a questioning look, but he refused to meet her eyes. She looked at Dick and raised a brow. He laughed, and Jason gave him a murderous glare - which he ignored.

“He crashed it into a bush outside the hospital after racing over to see you like a  _ bat  _ out of hell.” Dick snorted and Mari couldn’t help letting her own laughter out (though not catching the inside joke), but she did shoot her brother a look. 

“I had just found out that not only was my baby sister - who I hadn’t seen in nearly ten years - in town, but had just been shot with a shit-ton of fear toxin and gotten into a fight with f*cking  _ Scarecrow  _ and half his goons.” He rolled his eyes. “I was worried - sue me.” She giggled at his slight pout and snuggled further into his side. 

“Which is something we’ll be discussing later, by the way.” He added, pulling back to meet her eyes with a reproving glare. 

“But, I gotta say -” Dick interjected. “It was totally badass.” 

“Yes…” Damian added. “You fought quite proficiently.” He was looking at her as if she was a difficult riddle, and she shifted uncomfortably. His emerald green eyes were searching her, and she couldn’t help thinking that they were beautiful - even if they were a little too observant. 

_ Wait… what? _

Mari flushed and cleared her throat (it was still kinda raw). “I actually don’t remember too much… I remember some of what I saw, but I don’t remember seeing Scarecrow or any of his goons.” She scrunched up her brown in thought, but winced when it tweaked her eye. 

“There’s a security camera that caught the whole thing if you wish to see - though I’d understand if you do not want to relive it.” Damian offered, and she considered before nodding with a smile. It would be interesting to see a fight Marinette got in rather than Ladybug... she was curious to see how she had fared. 

“So… What about my class? Is it really ok for me to go back with you guys rather than the hotel?” Her question got an unexpected growl from Jason, and he tightened his grip on her shoulder a little - pulling her in closer. She had a feeling that he’d be squashing her if she weren’t injured.

“They didn’t even question it!” Dick threw his hands up - looking upset as well. “The only word anyone said against it was when they found out that you were staying at “Wayne Manor” and that ponytail witch complained that you were getting special treatment!” She shrugged, not expecting anything else and missed the look the boys exchanged.

“When we get there, there’s an empty room across the hall from mine. You can stay in that one, or you can have my bed if it’ll be more comfortable for you.” Jason tactfully changed the subject with a shrug. “I don’t stay there super often anyway, and there’s a couch in the room I can crash on if you don’t want to be left alone.”

Marinette almost jumped at the chance to share a room with her brother again - they’d always slept near each other for safety when she was younger - and she sorely missed it when she was in a foster home and  _ especially  _ once she got to Paris. But before she could answer, a voice sounded from the front of the car.

“Here we are.” Alfred spoke up, and Mari realized that they were in front of the manor - she didn’t notice how long they’d been driving.

The boys got out first, and Jason offered her a hand to help her out. 

She gaped at the building - it was the size of Chloe’s hotel! Her hands itched to pull out her sketchbook, and it was then that she realized - she didn’t have her bag with her. 

She didn’t have Tikki or Kaalki with her. 

“My bag! I think I left it at the hospital!” Mari turned to Jason, a wild, panicked look in her eyes. Her breaths were starting to come quicker and her vision was turning fuzzy at the edges. 

“Woah, woah, Pixie - Breathe!” Jason grasped her shoulders, and coached her through several long, even breaths. Once she had calmed down (ish) she turned to Alfred.

“Would you be willing to take me back to the hospital? There’s something really important in my bag that I need to have.”

Alfred gave her a warm smile. “I have your bag in the front seat, Miss Marinette - the hospital staff allowed Masters Dick and Damian to retrieve it for you before you checked out.” He went to the passenger side and pulled out her dark red and black messenger bag that she had made for the trip - it needed to be big enough to carry her sketching supplies and it had a special cozy nook for Tikki and Kaalki to rest and snack throughout the day. 

Mari rushed forward and clutched it to her chest, thanking Alfred over and over for keeping it safe for her. He merely nodded with a small smile that was a little concerned, and she realized that she was overreacting for having only lost a bag. 

“Sorry,” she murmured, shuffling in place. “It’s just that a few of my sketchbooks have been… damaged when I let them out of my sight, and I had some important designs in this one.” It wasn’t as if it wasn’t true - she’d lost a total of four sketchbooks to Lila, Alya, and the rest of the class - and this one had several designs for commissions she was working on for her MDC brand, plus the outfits she was working on for Lizzy and Sam - but she was admittedly more worried about misplacing the two tiny gods and the glasses that allowed her to teleport back to Paris in case of an Akuma. 

Alfred frowned slightly at her explanation, but assured her that she was fine, and he was glad nothing had been lost or damaged. 

She turned to find Dick, Damian, and Jason also frowning at her, and she gave a nervous smile - putting the bag’s strap over her head with a little difficulty due to her hands, but she felt much better with it where it belonged. She felt a reassuring nudge from Tikki, and her smile grew. 

“Well,” Dick broke the silence. “Shall we head in?” 

Mari nodded, and they all trouped inside as Alfred went to park the car. 

She couldn’t help but stare when she entered - not only was it huge, but it was beautiful and warm, everything Adrien’s house wasn’t. She felt her heart lurch at the thought of her friend - realizing that she hadn’t told any of them what happened, and she’d get absolute hell if they heard it from anyone else. She’d have to remember to call them tonight. 

Jason steered her after the two boys in front as they travelled further into the building, and they soon came to a large sitting area… full of people.

Mari shrunk back and Jason chuckled. He pulled her back, and allowed her to hide behind him as he ventured further in. 

Dick had plopped next to a beautiful woman with hair that looked like fire tied back in an elegant braid. Her skin was a light orange, and her eyes were completely green. 

A small girl with black hair and skin and eyes similar to that of the woman’s practically flew from the woman’s arms and into Dick’s. He swung her around a little before nuzzling her with his nose and sending her into a fit of giggles. She started to softly prod at the bandages on his face, loudly whispering “ouch” with each one. 

Damian moved to sit on the woman’s other side, and the little girl gave an excited “Hi uncle Dami!” and he gave her a soft smile in return.

There were… a lot of people - and she hasn’t done well in large groups outside the mask for a few years. She clutched at Jason’s jacket tightly, but hissed when it caused her knuckles to re-open. 

He reached behind and gently removed her hands, pulling her reluctantly forward to be seen by the room. All conversation stopped, and she could feel every eye in the room snap to her - analyzing with deadly accuracy. She tried to sink as far back as she could into Jason and he squeezed her shoulders reassuringly. 

“Listen up dip-” Alfred shot him a look. “...Sticks.” Jason finished. 

“This here’s my baby sister -” He stopped and bent over to whisper. “What do you want them callin’ you, Pixie-Pop?” 

“Marinette - or any variation is fine.” She smiled up at him, and he nodded.

“This is my baby sister Marinette. Nicknames are fine, but she’s allowed to veto them.” Mari took a deep breath. 

“H-Hello.” She gave a small wave and a smile. She found only kind, welcoming looks and smiles directed back, and relaxed a little.

A man - he looked to be the oldest besides Alfred - got up and approached him. 

_ This must be Bruce Wayne _ , she thought. She studied him as he walked over, mentally calculating his measurements and analyzing his walk. 

She’d had a theory about Bruce Wayne ever since her brother’s death (can she still call it that if he’s right here?) and as she studied the man up close, she was satisfied that there was at least a very strong possibility that she was correct. 

That, of course, did not help her nerves. 

Suddenly, at the thought of The Bat, a conversation from earlier (was that only earlier today?!) sprung to her mind and she barely had any time to cover her laughter with a sudden coughing fit. 

_ Batman underwear _ …If she was right about the identity,  **_Batman_ ** _ wore Batman-themed underwear. _

Her eyes found Tim who was sitting on a couch across the room, leaning on a pretty blond woman. 

Her brother tried to gently pat her back and Bruce looked confused as well as concerned. She locked eyes with the co-CEO and glared. 

She watched as he buried his head into the woman’s shoulder to hide his own laughter - choking out that he’d explain later when she gave him a questioning prod.

It took a full two minutes and all her Ladybug severity to compose herself. She took a deep breath and looked at Bruce again. Crap…  _ Fight it, fight it…  _ She forcibly replaced the image with that of a crowd of press and civilians after a battle and gratefully latched onto the mindset. 

Ok, she was good. She was going to  _ kill  _ Tim later, but she was good.

“I heard about your ordeal today, Marinette, I wish you were visiting after having a more pleasant day, but I am happy to welcome you to my home.” He seemed to also shake off her initial reaction and sent her an award-winning smile. 

She felt like he was analyzing her very soul behind that smile and her walls slammed up - her mind firmly in LB mode now. Batman or not, she was going to have to be careful around this guy if she wanted to keep certain things a secret.

“Th-Thank you Mr. Wayne. It’s an honor to meet Jason’s family.” She shook the offered hand and gave him a sincere smile of her own. “Thank you for taking care of him for me - I know he’s not the easiest to get along with.”

“Hey!” Jason pouted from behind her, and the whole room was set off into fits of laughter. 

Bruce’s eyes sparkled with amusement. “He’s certainly had his moments.”   
  


“Look,” Jason grumbled, leading her over to an open loveseat. “I didn’t bring her here so you could all gang up on me!” He pulled her into his side and she happily snuggled in. Man, she’d missed this. 

“If you thought that it wasn’t inevitable, then you really are as dumb as I remember.” she snarked, setting the room off again. The tension eased a little more from her shoulders.

He glared at her, but it held no heat. “And you’re just as snippy as I remember, squirt.” She stuck her tongue out at him and he chuckled, gently ruffling her hair. 

“Alright,” Bruce chuckled. “How about introductions?” Mari sat up to better see the room, and nodded at him to continue.

“Firstly, there’s Alfred Pennyworth, who’s our butler only by title - he’s more of a grandfather to the children as he raised me after my parents passed and helped to raise them.” She and Alfred shared a smile, and she took a moment to focus on his aura - rich royal blue with deep purple accents. 

She felt a strong kinship with him and that spark from before jumped again - she saw it this time - a golden string that thrummed to life like a musical note for a beat before disappearing. This time, Alfred seemed to notice it too, as he gave a barely perceptible start - his smile turning thoughtful.

“Dick, my oldest, you already know, and he’s next to his wife, Kori’, who is from Tamaran, and their daughter, Mar’i.” Marinette’s attention was torn from the butler’s odd familiarity, and she looked over to see Mari’ looking like she wanted to fly over and greet her (with a Tamaran for a mother, she probably could), but her father had a strong hold on her, and she pouted at him.

“Tim is my third son after Jason, and you’ve met him as well. He’s next to his girlfriend, Stephanie, or “Steph”, Brown.” Tim waved from where he was slumped over Steph’s shoulder. The girl shot her a bright smile, which Mari returned - ignoring Tim out of spite.

“Damian is my youngest son,” He indicated the boy with beautiful eyes and she found herself heating under his intense gaze - she broke eye contact first. “He might have introduced himself at the hospital. And that is his dog, Titus, next to him on the floor.” Damian scoffed, taking offence at the idea of not introducing himself - muttered about having better manners than his animal brothers, but Mari wasn’t paying attention.

At the mention of a dog, Mari’s eyes instantly found it hiding in the couch’s shadows and cooed at the giant black beast. His head popped up and he immediately trotted over for scratches, which she happily gave, baby-talking at him in an assortment of languages.

It took awhile to realize that everyone was staring at her.

“What?...” She shrunk back a little, and the Great Dane sat in front of her, whining until she resumed scratching behind his ear. 

“He doesn’t really warm up to people that quickly, Pixie, we’re just surprised is all.” Everyone nodded, except Damian who looked a little  jealous  betrayed. She giggled at his reaction, and he huffed at her. 

Bruce cleared his throat to regain their attention “Anyway, over here we have Cassandra Cain, or “Cass”. She does not often speak, preferring sign language and other forms of nonverbal communication.” Mari nodded and smiled warmly at the girl, who gave a slight nod. 

“And lastly we have my fiancé, Selina Kyle.” He held his hand out to an athletic woman with short black hair who had been sitting behind him. She glided over to him -  _ huh, the way she moves kinda reminds me of Chat…  _ \- and greeted Marinette with a warm smile. 

  
“It’s a pleasure to meet you, dear - please call me Selina.” She stuck out her hand and Mari took it, only to have Titus start whining again as she had stopped his pets to shake Selina’s hand. Mari giggled, and Selina rolled her eyes. “ _ Dogs _ .” She quipped with a small hint of fondness. 


	7. Chapter 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> So this is a shorter one, and I'm catching up to the pre-written ones so the updates will likely slow down a titch😬😅
> 
> A BIG thank you to my two lovely Beta Readers Clary_ashryver and SkyeHoltz
> 
> Enjoy lovelies!🥰

Jason was starting to get worried. 

Well, more worried than he already was.

He may not have been around her in a while, but his sister was acting very odd. She seemed comfortable enough with the Wayne family, but he caught her several times moving to a place that kept a wall at her back or angling herself so she had everyone in the room within her sight. Her eyes were often flitting around - and he knew what it looked like when someone was mentally marking exit points and possible weapons. 

Don’t even get him _started_ on the scars he’d seen, despite her best efforts to hide them with long clothes and makeup. Sure there were a few from when they were kids, but she was rarely in the line of fire then - and most that he’d seen were obtained within the last few years. 

There was also the few times she’d been shifty and nervous - like when the Dr. was talking about her recovery - just how he’d remember her acting when she’d tried to smuggle in yet _another_ injured bird or cat. 

Something was going on - and he was going to find out what. 

He also knew he wasn’t the only one that had caught onto there being something she was hiding.

Demon Spawn hadn’t taken his eyes off her all night ( _don’t kill him - don’t jump to conclusions. He’s just… trying to figure her out like you. Yeah..._ ). Jason watched as the youngest’s eyes tracked her movements and narrowed when she jumped or froze at a touch or noise. He chose to ignore the almost soft look he shot her once in a while - it had to be a trick of the light - Demon Spawn wasn’t capable of acting soft.

Replacement was doing that weird thing where he looked like he was three dimensions out, but his eyes tracked her moves and reactions like a hawk - mentally filing everything away for later analysis. (Though he did notice her glare and possibly flip Tim off - only to have it returned with a shit-eating grin and finger guns at one point…)

Dick made an effort to smile and be his normal annoying bubbly self - showing off his wife and daughter (who both seemed to absolutely love Mari) but he had that worried forehead crease that always showed up when Timmy was up too long or when Jason was pulling away emotionally.

Cass, Steph, and Kori’ (with Mari’) were almost constantly around his sister - trying to pull her into their girl group and help her feel welcome. It was pretty normal for them, but they were also subtly acting as a shield. He’d seen them do that with victims after an attack, and couldn’t tell if it was subconscious or not… 

Alfred and Bruce were what was really worrying Jason. They both were watching his sister with looks that screamed that they knew something the others didn’t - and they wore resigned, worried looks that set his teeth on edge. 

Mari herself seemed well aware of the looks and was doing her best to not let them get to her. She hadn’t released him all night (not that he’d have it any other way) and was often snuggled into his side or leaning against him as she talked. 

She liked to talk about her friends (there didn’t seem to be many for the bubbly girl he remembered), fashion, and the languages she’d learned. Damian had even got her to talk about martial arts and swordplay (apparently one of her friends was an Olympic fencer?). 

By the time Alfred called them all in for dinner, he had a large list of questions for her and notes he wanted to compare with the others. 

He just wasn’t sure how to bring them up. 

She seemed to waver between unimaginable strength and brittle fragility - he was terrified of what it would mean to break down her new walls just as much as he was determined to do so.  
_________________________________________________

Marinette was surprised at how comfortable she felt around the Waynes. 

Sure, she had to tamp down on the instincts that had become ingrained into her system more often than she would like, and the sharp eyes that seemed to follow her every move never seemed to miss when she’d slip up… but the fact that she was able to bat her instincts away in the face of veritable strangers was huge progress for her. 

She loved the people her brother had surrounded himself with, and she could tell that they loved him as much as she did. 

They bickered, poked, and messed around with each other in a way that made little Mary sing with joy. Not only was her brother here - _Alive!_ \- but he was happy and loved!

She decided for once in the past four years to let herself relax, and by the time she was led into the dining room, her shoulders felt as if the weight she’d collected over time had been cut in half. 

Little Mari’ had insisted on sitting with her “name sister” (could she _be_ any cuter?!) and happily talked her ear off all through the amazing meal. (She had to get this recipe from Alfred.)

They were in the living room winding down when she noticed the near-constant buzzing against her leg.

_Shit._

“Ah…” All eyes turned to her and she had to fight back the urge to shrink into her brother’s arm. 

_Breathe. They’re Jay-Jay’s family, not the class. You can drop the act._ She scolded herself - refusing to acknowledge that years of acting like an abused girl had in some ways wasn’t an act, and in others, made her into one. 

“I forgot to let my friends know what happened… is there any way I could make a call outside? There’s probably going to be some yelling for not letting them know sooner.” She nervously laughed, really not looking forward to the scolding ahead of her.

Jason gave a snort. “That reminds me - you and I need to have some words about the proper approach to a villain. Apparently, it’s been too long since you’ve been home.” 

She stuck her tongue out at him and gave him a swift elbow to the ribs. “Just because the villains I deal with in Paris aren’t glorified Halloween decorations - well, most of the time - doesn’t mean I’ve lost my touch, thank you very much.” She got up and looked around at the three doors leading from the room. “Umm…”

“I can show you to the gardens if you’d like.” Damian offered, jumping up a little too eagerly for Jason’s taste, but he had something more pressing on his mind as the two teenagers left the room with Titus at their heels. 

_Villains she deals with in Paris…?_  
_______________________________________________

“So…” Damian started, floundering for a moment - before stopping. 

‘So’??? When had he ever started a sentence so casually? Scratch that - when had he ever spoken without knowing exactly what he was going to say?! 

His steps slowed as his mind was trying to decipher what was going on, and it took a nudge from Titus against his leg to bring him out of his reverie. 

He looked up to see bluebell eyes looking at him in question. Why are they so… entrancing? Blue eyes aren’t anything new to him - it seemed everyone other than him in his family had them! But hers were mesmerizing.

He watched as the inquisitive look began to morph to slight concern and she waved her hand a bit in front of his face. 

“You ok Damian?” Her soft voice made his heart leap at the sound of his name on her lips, and he internally scowled at himself.

“Yes, I was simply… wondering about your initial reaction to meeting my father tonight.” _What?? That was not what I was going to ask! I was going to ask about the form she’d used on the third assailant after she had disposed of Scarecrow!_

He was distracted by her startled laughter and the reddening of her cheeks. Despite the bruising and bandages she bore, it was a sight that stole his breath.

“Oh!... Um… Well, you see, I met Tim this morning when I was taking Lizzy and Sam to breakfast - they’re these kids I’d met on my walk to your family’s office - and he mentioned… uh…” She trailed off, mumbling the last bit so lowly and quickly that he didn’t catch it - her blush growing as her giggles increased. It actually looked as if it was beginning to disturb her injuries. 

“I’m sorry, what was that last part?” He asked, unable to help the small smile that crept onto his face from her contagious laughter. 

She took a deep breath, and turned her gaze to Titus - unable to speak to him apparently. “Tim said that your dad has been know to… walkaroundinbatmanunderwear.” She snorted and hid behind her hands, but he was able to figure it out that time. 

“Ah.” He surprised himself with a chuckle. “Yes, Jason was actually the one who gifted him those last year for Christmas.” The anti-hero had actually got them all underwear based on their alter egos that year - he’d thought it was hilarious. 

She took several moments to calm down, and he found that he didn’t mind in the least. Her eyes danced beautifully when she laughed… 

_Gah! Stop it!_ He shook himself, and continued to their destination.

They walked the rest of the way to the French Doors that led to the gardens in companionable silence, and he left Titus with her (as if he had a choice - the beast refused to follow him!) - he assured her that he would stay near enough to walk her back when she was done, but not so close that he’d be able to eavesdrop. She sent him a grateful smile and walked to a bench just off to the right, Titus following as close as he could without knocking her down. 

Damian went to the end of the hall to wait - not even bothering to try and listen in on her conversation as he was trying to figure out _what the hell was wrong with him._


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sorry - I meant to post this yesterday, but got home late😅
> 
> I've actually been watching a bunch of DC movies to get more familiar with the characters and universes (Batman vs. TMNT is one of the funniest things I've ever seen - I'm having to physically restrain myself from adding the turtles to this story just for how fun the boy's dynamic would be with the Batboys🤣. )
> 
> Let me know what you all think!🥰😁
> 
> Edit: I really am trying to reply to all your wonderful comments - I absolutely love getting them and do a happy dance whenever a new one comes through - I'm sorry if I forget or miss yours, but know that it's greatly appreciated!💕💕💕

Mari took a deep breath, drawing comfort from Titus as he leaned his head across her lap, before pressing the  _ call  _ button under Adrien’s contact information. 

“MARIBUG! ARE YOU OK? WHERE ARE YOU? NINO SAID YOU WEREN’T WITH THEM ANYMORE AND THERE WAS AN  _ ATTACK _ ?! ARE YOU HURT??? GET KAALKI TO MAKE A YOU-KNOW-WHAT RIGHT HERE RIGHT NOW!!!” Adrien’s panicked face filled her screen, and she had to pat Titus’ head in reassurance as he’d jolted to attention with a growl at the noise.

“CAT!” She yelled, and he cut off, his eyes narrowing at the Great Dane’s head that had come into view. “I need to get everyone else on before the yelling and explanations can start, ok?” He slowly nodded, tearing his eyes from the k9 to look at her. She winced at his wild look, knowing it meant that he’d been freaking out for a while.

The next five minutes consisted of her adding someone to the call, getting yelled at (in Japanese for half of Kagami’s portion), and her calming them down enough to get the next person on. Luka was the last to be added, and he only looked at her with a mix of relief, worry, and slight accusation. Man, that was so much worse than getting yelled at. 

“Ok.” She breathed after everyone was quiet. “Can I explain how the day went after my text before the tour, or do you guys need to get more of it out?” They all seemed to be locking eyes with each other (it looked odd with them all on separate screens) before Luka spoke up.

“Tell us what happened Nette.”

She nodded and reached out to pat the dog who was once again on her lap before beginning.

“Ok - first off, I’m fine.” She got some raised eyebrows directed at her battered face at that. “Yes, I’m a little beat up, but we’ve all had worse.” That got a few slow nods. She was using her ‘debriefing’ voice - as it was something familiar for her to latch onto, and they recognized it.

“Scarecrow and thirty-five men attacked the class during the tour - specifically the class, they didn’t even pay attention to anyone else in the room. We were corralled away from any exits and the only ally I could possibly see was the tour guide - Dick. Scarecrow mentioned that a…” She sighed, feeling that something big was starting and not really having the energy for it. “He said that a  _ Moth  _ had told him that the class had experienced fear in a way he’d never seen before and wanted to see how we’d react to a new strain of his fear toxin.” They all reacted to the implication of the man they’d been fighting for years.

“Hawkmoth.” Adrien breathed, his face hardening. “Did he say anything else?” Mari shook her head.

“He had two men grab Mylene from the group - and had another three pin Dick to keep him from interfering - and…” She trailed off

“You stepped in.” Chloe didn’t phrase it as a question. 

Mari nodded, avoiding anyone’s eyes and playing with Titus’ ears. 

She heard a deep draw of breath from Adrien - as if he was going to say something - before he released it in a resigned puff. 

Kagami spoke up. “What then, Mari-hime?”

“He injected me with… I don’t know how much of his toxin, and I had a... vision? Dream? Hallucination?...” She took a deep breath. “I saw Hawkmoth and… all of you - everyone I’ve ever given a miraculous to - and Chat - dead.” She heard Chloe make a noise as if to say something, but she plowed on, unable to stop, or she’d break and never get through it. 

“Everyone turned into a cloud purified akuma before I could reach them, and then -” She choked. “I saw my brother. He looked the same as the last time I saw him - a-after the bomb.”

There were several more noises, but she didn’t register them.

“He… he disappeared too, and then Hawkmoth told me to hand over my earrings... but then he turned into the Joker. They kept... flickering back and forth from one form to another - saying… things.” She felt her blood boil again, though to a much lesser extent than before. 

“I lost it. I dove at them and hit them until they stopped talking. And then there were a bunch of Joker’s goons and several Mayuras - they were Scarecrow goons, but my mind just saw them differently - I took them down too.” She heard Luka and Adrien call her name a few times, but ignored them.

“There were two that came at me and held me down - I assume they were bats as there was a needle prick and then I was out - I woke up in the hospital hours later.” She stopped, taking a large gulp of air, finally getting through it - though she thinks she may have rushed and stumbled over her words a bit.

There was silence from the others for several beats.

“Nette, I can hear your song from here, there’s more to this story, isn’t there?” Luka’s calming words helped her to draw in another deep breath. She took a few more before finally looking at the faces on her screen.

“Yeah… I… I found my brother - well, he found me.”

“...”

“WHAT?!” All four voices rang out. 

“But Bugaboo…” She looked up to see a very concerned Adrien.  _ He probably thinks I’ve gone off the deep end _ , she thought. 

“I know Chaton, but it’s true.” Her eyes started to water, and she didn’t bother stopping the tears from falling. “Jay-Jay’s alive - he saw me on the security footage and found me at the hospital.” She thought back to waking up to him  _ there _ after all this time _ …  _ she still can’t believe that he wasn’t gone.

“He -” She hiccupped. “He’s  **alive** .  _ My brother’s alive _ .” 

She hadn’t really had time to process the fact, and it seemed that her mind decided that now was a good time for it. 

_ How was he alive?  _

_ ~“I was, Pixie, I was. But I’m not anymore..”~ _

She remembered him telling her that.  _ What does that even  _ **_mean_ ** _?  _ She wasn’t ignorant - she’d been around magic enough to know that there were ways for the dead to return, but nothing good ever came from the instances she’d read about in the texts Master Fu had left her - or the times she’d been told of by the Kwamii. 

_ What happened? What price was paid? Did Jason pay it? Was… was he still  _ her  _ Jason? _ ... She knew that it was a stupid thought - he  _ felt  _ like her Jason -  _ well… there was that ‘off’ feeling that just didn’t feel right that she’d noticed but hadn’t really had the time to analyze or ask Tikki about…  _

Her mind was swirling out of control, and she faintly heard noises... She thinks there was a dog barking?

She vaguely felt hands grab hers, and shake her slightly, but she just couldn’t  _ focus.  _ She couldn’t  _ breathe…  _ she needed to  _ breathe!  _ A muttered curse was heard, and one of the hands left her.

“ _ PIXIE! _ ” She heard Jason’s voice filter through what seemed like hours later - muffled and accompanied by a loud ringing. “Pix, you HAVE to  _ breathe, _ sweetheart - come on, breathe with me.” She fought the urge to sink further into the oncoming darkness, and follow her brother’s instructions. 

In five counts. Hold. Out 5 counts. Hold. In five counts. Hold. Out five counts. Hold...

She breathed with him for several minutes, her senses slowly returning. She heard Damian off to the side talking with her friends in French. She felt herself curled into a fetal position on Jason’s lap as he slowly rocked her and counted out her breaths for her. Titus was whining softly near Jason’s knee, his nose nudging her arm after he gave it a few licks. She felt Tikki in her jacket ( _ when had she moved there? _ ) nuzzling into her as best as she could. 

She took another handful of measured breaths, and looked up into her brother’s worried gaze. 

“J- Jay…?” 

She burst into tears and burrowed further into him. “Y… You are  _ here…  _ right? This isn’t still a part of the gas or a dream?” She choked at the thought. 

“Please… please.” She trembled and clutched at his shirt, ignoring the sting of her knuckles reopening.

He pulled her in tighter. “Oh Pix…” He breathed, his voice cracking. “I’m here, sweetheart, I’m here. I promise it’s not a dream, and the gas is nearly out of your system.” 

He continued to murmur assurances to her, pressing the occasional kiss to the top of her head. 

She calmed down after a bit, slowly releasing his shirt. 

“Sorry Jay.” She whispered, leaning back to give him a watery smile.

“Nothin’ to be sorry for, Pix. It’s a lot to take in - and the doc did say that panic attacks were a possibility.” He stopped rocking - switching to rubbing her back in comforting circles and she relaxed into him. 

“Bugaboo?” She looked up to see Damian holding her phone out to her with her friend’s worried faces displayed. She took it from him with a grateful smile and faced the screen.

“You alright L-” Chloe cut herself off. “Dupain-Cheng?” She amended.

“I’m alright guys, just a little worn out from everything today.” Mentioning it only seemed to allow the weight of the day’s events finally hit and she released a huge yawn. The chest she was pressed against rumbled a bit with a low chuckle.

“Oh!” She perked up a bit. “Say hi to my brother Jason, everyone!” She moved the phone back so he was in the shot and they all greeted him with varying degrees of caution. She’d spoken of her brother to Kagami, Luka, and Chat - and Chloe was informed of the story earlier today - so they were obviously wary of her suddenly not-dead brother.

“Hello friends of Pixie’s - thanks for taking care of my baby sis. She talks a lot about you all.” He sent them a grateful smile, and they all relaxed a little. 

“Take care of her while she’s over there, yeah?” Adrien was the first to give him a real smile, and Mari stuck her tongue out at him for insinuating she needed to be baby-sat.  The events of today didn’t help his argument, it was just a coincidence.

Her childish response eased even more of the tension, and they all laughed. She spent a few more minutes talking with them before signing off. 

At her fifth yawn of the night, Jason eased her out of his lap and into a princess carry.

“Alright squirt, that’s enough excitement for today. Time for bed.” 

She squawked as he began to walk into the house.

“Jay! Put me down! My legs aren’t broken - I can walk!” She wiggled a bit and he tightened his hold.

“Come on Pix…” He looked down at her and she saw how much today had affected him too. “Just… Just let me carry my sister to bed… just for tonight?” He sounded close to pleading, so she nodded. Sighing and settling in.    
  
“You’re lucky I love you, ya big dummy.” She mumbled, folding her arms with a very unconvincing pout.

He laughed, giving her a peck on her forehead. “Love you too sis.”

She was nearly asleep by the time he set her on the bed. He removed her shoes for her, and pulled the covers up to her chin. He started to sneak out, but she grabbed his wrist. 

“Stay till I fall asleep?” She mumbled

“Course’, Pix.” He sat on the bed next to her, and she fell asleep to him running his fingers through her hair. 

_________________________________________________________

(Rewind - Jason’s POV) 

Jason and the others stared after the two as they retreated with the dog happily trotting behind them. 

“The f*ck does she mean ‘the villains she deals with in Paris’?!” Jason turned to the group and got only equally confused looks in return. Except for three people.

Mari’ who was passed out on her father’s shoulder.

Tim who looked pensive - like he’d heard of it before, but was still in the process of figuring it out.

And Bruce. 

Bruce looked like he knew  _ exactly  _ what was going on and was preparing to act like he didn’t.

“You.” He pointed at his adoptive father accusingly. “You know what she’s talking about.” Bruce now had the attention of everyone in the room.

“That’s… Classified.” He was in Batman mode now.

“Bullshit! I thought she was safe over there! What the f*ck is going on?” He jumped up from his spot, starting to pace - a small twinge of regret came at the sound of his niece waking up at his yell.

“I didn’t know you even  _ had  _ a sister until I got a call from the police about you breaking every traffic law on your way to the hospital and talked with Dick after you’d gone to her room. I’m sorry she’s been a part of the situation, but that doesn’t change the fact that it’s classified!” Bruce was exasperated and slightly accusatory at being left out of the loop. 

_ Probably mad the ‘world’s greatest detective’ didn’t know something big about someone living under his own roof _ . Jason thought with slight satisfaction.

“I will return.” Kori’ quietly said to Dick in the background as she took their daughter from him to take her to the room they used when they stayed over. He nodded, giving them both a kiss, and turned to the men who looked close to facing off.

“Look - B, it’s out now, you know we’ll figure it out sooner or later - can’t you just clue us in?” Dick walked up to them with his hands up in a peace-making gesture. He really didn’t want them fighting again - they’d only been truly friendly for about two years now, and it was still rocky at times.

Bruce sighed. “That’s not my call…” He ran his hands through his hair, giving his two eldest an almost soft look, begging them to understand. He was growing attached to the little spitfire too, but he’d given his word to the Parisian heroes. 

“Well...” Tim cut in from behind them. They all turned to where he was shifting on the couch. “B may be sworn to secrecy or whatever, but I was talking to Mari about it earlier…” He glanced at Bruce who gave a grunt, but nodded, knowing that there was nothing to be done about it now.

“When we got to the WE building after I met her at Rudy’s this morning, she said something about a villain named ‘Hawkmoth’... she seemed like it was an accident that she said anything in the first place, but finally explained that he’s got some kind of magic jewelry that lets him create puppets out of civilians who are exhibiting negative emotions.” He trailed off at the look he was getting from everyone but Bruce. “I know, it sounds nuts, but she showed me this news recording of the first incident - and it’s even crazier than it sounds! There was this giant rock creature made from a boy who -” 

He was cut off by the sound of Jason’s phone. He was going to ignore it, but it was the ringtone Tim had made him out of a compilation of a bunch of Damian’s “Tt” sounds with a techno beat in the background.  _ Wasn’t he with Pixie?... _ He picked up.

“What-” He started, but was cut off.

“Marinette is having a panic attack - a bad one - I can’t get her to snap out of it.” Damian’s voice was a little high and rushed - definitely not his normal composed tone. 

Jason didn’t even bother hanging up before he bolted for the back door, his family on his heels.

They came out to see his sister hyperventilating and curled in on herself - Damian holding her hands to keep her from scratching herself. 

Titus was barking at them as they exited the mansion, seemingly trying to get their attention, and there were several voices yelling in French wanting to know what was going on coming from Mari’s phone on the ground. 

Jason instantly took Damian’s spot and pulled her into his lap - still curled in on herself. He tried to get through to her - eventually getting her to breathe along with him. Titus quieted to sad whines and started to lick Mari’s arm and nudge her with his nose.

Damian bent to pick up the phone, and started to explain the situation in French - the group firing off questions about who he was, if Mari was ok, what happened, where Mari was at the moment, if her ‘brother’ was really who he said he was…

After seeing that they weren’t needed, the others retreated, letting the two boys know that they were going to the ‘ _ office’ _ , and would meet them down there when everything was settled to continue their conversation. They received a nod of acknowledgement from Damian and left them to it. 

As Mari calmed down enough to register  _ why  _ she was panicking, she started to shake and cry, begging to know if he was  _ really  _ here. 

Jason’s heart broke at the fear and hope that she seemed to bounce between. He should have known the tearful reunion at the hospital was too easy. 

They’d been torn from each other, and traumatized at the thought of the other at the hands of the Joker - but he’d at least had time to know she was ok and alive. She had thought he was dead for almost ten years, had a run-in with Scarecrow, got beat to hell, and found out that her brother has been alive and kicking for a while… The breakdown was inevitable, and the lingering fear toxin wasn’t helping.

He held her and rocked back and forth as he used to after she had a nightmare. After she’d calmed down, they said hello to her concerned friends (they were suspicious of him and wary - he liked them already) and she let out yet another great yawn, her weight shifting to get more comfortable. 

He didn’t even think about it - he just swept her up in his arms and started to walk to his room. Demon Spawn left as well and had already headed off to the cave when she started to protest. 

He didn’t want to put her down… it felt so nice to just hold her again - carrying her off to bed after calming her down was nearly tradition when they were kids. So he asked - letting the need show in his eyes when they looked at each other, and she relented with a huff. He could tell she knew what he meant, and was enjoying the nostalgia as well. 

He took off her shoes and jacket, setting them on the chair on the other end of the nightstand before setting her into the covers and pulling them over her small form. 

Remembering the nurse mentioning how cold she had gotten, he pulled the extra blanket from the foot of the bed and set it over her as well. He waited until her breathing had evened out before leaving and softly closing the door.

He didn’t want to leave her alone, but knew that he was finally going to get some answers about what had been going on with her when he joined the others in the cave.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry for my lack of a post last week - I meant to, but life got... well, anyway - I hope this chapter goes over well. I worked quite a bit on it - trying to figure out the best way to get my thoughts out.  
> There was a comment on the "girl group" that the bat-ladies had - and I certainly agree that I am not overly versed in the DC universe, it's characters, and how they'd act. I watched the old Teen Titans when I was a kid, and can't help but see Starfire as a mix of that one and the one from the two recent titan movies. I also can't help but love the idea of Kor'i latching onto wanting a "typical earth female group" (after dick shows her a bunch of his favorite movies like Mama Mia and Grease😆).  
> Perhaps a silly thought - but I've always seen the batboys having a connection that would tend to leave others (unintentionally) out. Even though they're emotionally stunted dudes with dangerous jobs - they'd still have a connection. That's not to say the girls aren't wholeheartedly apart of the family and team, Kor'i just fell in love with the idea and coerced the others into giving in. The other girls soon weren't just pretending to humor her, and they all became close (in my mind). I think I got this across well.😄  
> Enjoy😁

Damian Al Ghul Wayne was rarely caught unawares - yet he found himself completely unbalanced by a girl he’d only met earlier that day.

He wasn’t an emotional idiot - at least, he wasn’t as bad as his upbringing under a manipulative assassin and the emotionally stunted Batman could have left him. He knew what it was to like a girl - he’d even dated his teammate Raven for a while - but this was no mere crush or simple physical attraction. 

This slip of a girl had captured his attention from the first moment he laid eyes on her - a battle cry on her lips like a goddess on a warpath, her eyes fierce and vengeful with several foes defeated at her feet. She’d been close to collapsing, yet managed to fight off him and his brother for far longer than she should have been able to - landing hits that still had him moving stiffly. 

Her connection to Todd was unexpected, but it had allowed him to observe her.

She was an enigma - a contradiction at every turn. Her surety in a fight had shifted into a meek demeanor. She was shy and stuttering - but her stance was constantly at the ready, routinely mapping out a room and it’s advantages. 

She was openly affectionate with Todd, but her eyes occasionally became wary, guarded, as if she expected something, or someone, to leap at her at any given moment. 

As much as she relaxed in Wayne's presence, she seemed aware in a way that indicated that she was ready to fight on her own against everyone in the room at any moment - as if she expected them to turn on her. He was familiar with the look - having grown up around assassins who had to guard against the inevitability that their “allies” would suddenly switch sides to better their position in the League. 

But why would a 17 year old civilian need to think like that? Even with the trouble that was being suggested with her peers, she should not have such a harrowing, haunted look in her eyes. 

What’s more - he couldn’t for the life of him figure out why it bothered him so much. 

She was Todd’s sister, and therefore she was connected to his family. One of his defining personality traits was his fierce loyalty - but that had to be earned. A simple connection by association wasn’t enough to get this response from him. He’d only known the girl for less than  _ a day _ for heaven’s sake!

He knew instinctively that there was more to the issues in Paris, and how Marinette was connected, than was being said - but couldn’t yet say why it affected him this intensely. 

He briefly found himself wanting to take her to the mountain monastery he’d stayed in after leaving the League just to get her as far from the issue as possible after seeing the frightened look that crossed her face when startled. 

And then there was the incident on the terrace. 

He had seen a fair amount of panic attacks - it was inevitable in his line of work - but watching her spiral tonight had scared him in a way nothing had before. His heart had ached for her, and he was frantic to find some way, any way, to help. When she had calmed down and taken the phone to speak with her friends, he had not wanted to leave her side - it felt almost wrong to. He had finally dragged himself and Titus away as Todd had gathered her up to take her to bed.

_ I wish I had been the one to pick her up.  _ He shook his head and tried to ignore the thought, telling Titus to stay in the living room as he continued to the grandfather clock and moved the arms to the familiar time.

His mind battled with itself and his usual scowl deepened as he entered the batcave, deep in thought. He ignored the questioning looks his family shot him in favor of joining Goliath off to the side of where they were crowded around Drake at the computer. He leaned against his old friend and allowed him to snuffle around his clothes as he and the others waited for Todd to return. 

Jason entered the cave to see Tim at the computer with Barbara on a minimized screen in the corner helping him find relevant information and videos. 

Bruce, Selina, Alfred, Dick, Steph, Kor'i’, and Cass were right behind Tim, watching and quietly talking. 

  
Damian was off to the side a bit, scratching Goliath’s ears as he sniffed at his boy’s clothes - obviously curious about the new smell. 

As they noticed Jason’s entrance, Steph, Cass, Selina, and Kor'i’ came over. He always found it amusing that Kor'i’ had basically forcefully formed a “typical human female group” from the women in, and associated with, his family. (She’d wanted one ever since Dick had introduced her to his giant collection of teen girl movies).

She’d been ecstatic to be apart of the Waynes - and when she had noticed that the boys shared a bond that occasionally left the girls out (Steph explained that they distanced themselves on purpose as it “saved some of their sanity and brain cells” - but that didn’t deter the alien princess) she’d insisted that they form their own “bonded group”. Some of the girls (Steph) had resisted, but they’d all eventually given in and had grown quite close.

“How does she fare?” Kor'i’ asked, obviously concerned. 

He sighed, running a hand down his face. “It took a bit to calm her down, but once the excitement was over - she was out like a light.” He turned his attention to the others. 

“Hey, Timbo? Could you keep an eye on the cams in the hall for me? She’s in the room across from mine, and they should pick up the sound if she has a nightmare or something.” Tim nodded, pulling up the indicated section in the security feed and placing an alert on it if the noise level reached past a certain decibel range. 

They had all been shooting him odd looks at his out of character behavior towards his sister all night, but Tim knew that now wasn’t the time to question him - he was a protective brother on a mission.

He walked over, the girls following, to look over what Babs and Tim had collected so far, but was stopped by the family Patriarch’s voice.

“Jason… I… well,” Jason hadn’t seen Bruce so at a loss for words since he’d attempted to give ‘The Talk’ to Damian - who already knew everything and was happy to watch his father flounder. 

“Jason,” He sighed, seeming intent on just biting the bullet. “Would you be willing to share with the rest of us what you told Dick and Damian in the hospital? About your sister?” 

The whole room tensed.

Jason started a little at the request - mainly because it was asked rather than ordered. 

He sighed and ran his hand through his hair for the umpteenth time that day. “I… I guess.” He looked up at the man who’d taken him from the streets and given him a family - one he was grateful to have after he’d made the difficult decision to let Mary go. 

Bruce nodded, some tension leaving his shoulders. “I know that it won’t be easy, but your sister is an unknown - one that has apparently been on the Joker’s radar according to Dick. We want to protect her as we would anyone in this room, and knowledge will help us to do that.” In a rare show of affection to his second eldest, he placed a comforting hand on his shoulder and gave it a squeeze and met his eyes to better convey his own concern for the girl. 

Jason sent him a nod before moving to claim a chair at the debriefing table - the others all following his lead. 

After everyone had settled in, he told them the same story from earlier in the day - though with a lot less anxiety as Mari was peacefully asleep upstairs rather than in a hospital bed. Kor'i’ was crying at the end of it, and everyone else looked grim. 

“Todd,” Damian piped up after several moments of silence that followed his tale. “Before Grayson and I left to give you time to reacquaint yourselves, I heard her say that she’d seen Batman carry you from the building.” Bruce jolted violently.

“So she knows you were Robin, and that something big happened in order to bring you back as she’d seen the state you were in - has she mentioned anything about suspecting you still working with the Bats? Or has she asked how you came back?” Damian raised a questioning brow from his spot leaning against the great red Dragon Bat that was headbutting him in an attempt to get more scratches.

“She was there?” Bruce whispered in horror

“Well…” Jason scrunched up his nose in thought. “She did mention that she saw you leave with my body that day, and I learned that she got away from the Joker right after he took her away - before setting off the bomb - so there was time for her to get there.”

“The Joker took her from the scene?” Bruce began to look slightly green. Selina reached over and grabbed his hand, the only indication he gave that he noticed was a slight squeeze in return - his eyes still grimly locked on his second eldest. 

Jason nodded with a growl. “Yeah - he said something about ‘having fun planned’... When I first got out of the League, I was worried he still had her.” He clenched his fists at the reminder.

“As Joker is currently out of Arkham, we need to be careful with where she goes - especially alone. If he recognizes her…” Bruce trailed off, and everyone in the room flinched. There was tense silence for a while as they went over the new information.

“Ahem,” Tim coughed, pulling them from the sobering topic. “I think we can start in on what we’ve gathered so far about the Paris situation now that we’re caught up with that.” Tim sighed, plopping back into the chair at the bat computer and waited for everyone to gather around before starting. 

“We’ll start with the video that Mari showed me this morning.” He reached over with the mouse and pulled up a tab - clicking on the video.

Jason watched in a mix of growing horror and confusion.  _ What in the ever loving  _ **_F*ck_ ** _? _

“This -” Tim gestured to the screen after the video ended. “Was the first attack by Hawkmoth, and it seems like the heroes’ first battle as well… as in their first battle ever.” They all exchanged grim looks - it was obvious how young and inexperienced the two were. 

“There are hundreds more battles recorded - either with video evidence, or through eye witness reports.” He clicked around some more, bringing up numerous small windows showing images of oddly dressed individuals - most appeared human, but there were a few that were a vast array of creatures.

“For the most part, in the beginning, the villains were difficult, but manageable with a few exceptions. Here-” He brought up the pictures of a toddler and a thin man in a suit. “Are the two who have been akumatized the most of anyone in Paris.”

“ _ A baby?! _ ” Dick was gaping at the screen along with the others. “That sicko used a _ baby  _ to fight these kids?!” He couldn’t help but think of his little Mar'i, and his fists clenched.

Tim nodded. “August, a.k.a - Gigantitan. He’s the youngest recorded victim, and has been akumatized a total of twelve times spanning from the first incident at 15 months old, until he was just over three years old. Each akumatization was over trivial matters such as not having a sweet or toy.” Dick turned green, and Kor'i’s eyes flashed dangerously. 

“These battles were normally quick, but done at inconvenient times of the day for kids at the age we put the heroes - which is about twelve to fourteen when the first battle occurred.” He grimaced, pulling up two clear pictures of the heroes from the first battle. “Making them around sixteen to eighteen now.” Two more recent pictures faded in next to their younger counterparts.

The biggest difference was their eyes - you could tell that they’d lost all semblance of innocence and were thoroughly disillusioned. 

Their costumes had changed as well - the red in Ladybugs’ suit had darkened significantly, and it was no longer a simple stretch of fabric. She wore a plain black sleeveless bodysuit that went halfway up her neck. A vertical tri-sectioned, fitted tunic in her classic spotted pattern reached about mid-thigh in a tapered point. The top looked to be styled after a cheongsam with a sweetheart keyhole, and her gloves were red with black fingers that nearly reached the tips of her capped sleeves. She had plain red mid-calf boots with a slight wedge heel. Her hair was significantly longer, and now in a single ponytail with her signature ribbons imitating antenna. 

Chat Noir’s suit had changed as well - though not nearly as dramatically. He remained in a leather bodysuit, but it was more streamlined, with dark green accents all along his limbs and torso. His bell was replaced with a large dull gold button that held his collar in place. His paw-patterned boots had been slimmed down and the ‘toes’ were less noticeable. 

“As for ‘Mr. Pigeon’, aka Xavier Ramier, he’s been akumatized a grand total of twenty six times over four years, his last appearance was three months ago - and his frequency seems to be due to Chat Noir's allergies to feathers.” 

“What of the less ‘manageable’ ones Timmy?” Steph asked, her hand on her chin.

Tim grimaced before pulling up a document. “Syren, aka Odine - a middle schooler at the time of her akumatization.” A girl’s picture pulls up alongside the document. “This akuma marked a change in the severity of the villains Hawkmoth created as there were recorded deaths - nearly two million to be exact.” Kor'i’ gasped and covered her mouth and the others just stared at Tim.

“That’s nearly the entire population - we certainly would have heard of that, magic block on outgoing information - or whatever has kept us in the dark so far - or not!” Damian said, his brow furrowing as he pushed off of Goliath and started to pace. 

“That’s where Ladybug comes in apparently.” Tim pulled up a video titled ‘A Miraculous Compilation” and they watched as wave after wave of ladybugs swarmed over broken objects and people who were obviously hurt - sometimes blurred out and obviously not in natural positions - only to leave them everything and everyone perfectly intact.

“It seems that the power she activates after using her ‘Lucky Charm’ allows her to reverse all damages brought on by the fight - including death - and those who die don’t remember a thing.” He pulled up several reports of eye-witnesses to severe injury or death that was suddenly fixed.

“What are their powers exactly?” Cass questioned, making Dick jump a little as she had moved closer to him without his knowledge. 

“Ladybug “purifies” the akumas that have possessed something of the victim-turned-villain’s. Once she locates and breaks it, she captures the corrupted butterfly in her yoyo and releases a normal white one” He played a video that showed what he’d explained. “She can also call on a ‘Lucky Charm’ during battle - and is given random items that are often used in convoluted plans to win a battle. There’s actually a video in here of her winning against a dude that looks like one of those walking trees in Lord of the Rings with a gum wrapper. Once she finishes a fight, she throws the Luck Charm into the air and calls out ‘Miraculous Ladybug’ and a bunch of ladybugs fly out and fix everything.” 

He switched the screen yet again to show a video compilation called ‘Chat’s Cataclysms’ and allowed it to play as he talked.

“Chat Noir is limited to one power as far as I can tell - his ‘cataclysm’” He gestured to the video. “He calls out his activation phrase and destructive power gathers in his hand - ready to turn anything he touches into ash.” They all watched in a mix of awe and worry as the small blond boy wielded devastating power at his literal fingertips over and over again - sometimes causing entire structures to disintegrate. 

Jason stared at the most recent picture of Ladybug, trying to fight through the odd haze that seemed to cover her face to figure out why her image bothered him so much. He seemed to be close to figuring out what it was when Tim continued and all thoughts of Ladybug vanishing fled his mind.

“There are other heroes that have helped at one point or another, but I don’t have much of their files built up yet.” He pulled up another seven photos, all of costumed kids around the main hero's age. “I didn’t get as far with them as I got sidetracked by Jason’s sister and how often she shows up in a fight.”

The screen then filled with pictures of Marinette.

There was a blurry picture of her on a boat with a red headed villain in the background while she and the Cat hero were stuck in a clear box. A picture of her guarding a group of young children against a man dressed all in black with dark metal chainmail and an axe. A picture of her distracting a man whose outfit is covered in kitchen knives, and he was actively throwing them at her - the picture next to it showed her escaping with one of the knives embedded in her abdomen while the Cat hero distracted the villain. 

Numerous pictures of Jason’s long lost sister engaging villains and helping to move people to safety. 

Everyone jumped at the sound of a chair crashing to the floor and Jason’s scream of frustration. 

“WHAT THE  **F*UCK** DOES SHE THINK SHE’S DOING???” He itched to reach for his guns, to go upstairs and  _ shake  _ his sister until she saw sense, to fly to Paris and beat the absolute shit out of anyone who looked even  _ remotely  _ like Hawkshit… 

Though no one in the cave had the ability Mari possessed to see another’s aura, it was clear to everyone that the anger haunting him ever since he’d emerged from the pit was rearing its head and looking for vengeance.

The others weren’t much better off.

Bruce made a decision.

“Suit up.” He spoke, his sharp baritone cutting through the tension and attracting all the eyes to him rather than Jason who was pacing like a wild animal ready to pounce. 

Jason’s expression morphed into confusion. “What? Are we going over there now?... I didn’t realize there was a Zeta Tube in Paris.” He couldn’t muster up anything other than absolute shock that Bruce was not only on the same page as him, but willing to allow him near the nut job that had been making his baby sister’s life miserable. 

“No.” Bruce answered, trying to be careful of his wording - aware that his second youngest was nearing the edge.

_ Should have known it was too good to be true.  _ Jason mentaly groused, resuming his pacing with a scoff.

“You need to cool down - preferably before Marinette wakes up.” Jason paused at her name, a little more willing to listen. “This is a delicate situation - one that needs to be discussed with the local heroes as well as those in the League that are in the know before any action can be taken.”

“Those damn  _ kids  _ aren’t going to be able to do this on their own! You heard Tim -  _ you saw the f*ucking pictures  _ \- the fights are getting worse, and my baby sister is  **_right in the middle of it_ ** !” He slammed his hand down onto the metal table, leaving a fair-sized dent.

“You also heard that the villain takes advantage of negative emotions? Imagine how much more difficult a fight would be for them if they had to go up against a superpowered puppet, or someone with battle experience? As far as we can tell, all of the victims so far are average civilians - and the carnage from that Syren girl has become almost normal!” 

Everyone blanched at the thought - sure they’d all witnessed their fair share of natural disasters and large-scale battles, but never so many. The more they looked at this, the worse it got, and they were getting the sinking feeling that it had the potential to be a world-ending event. 

Yeah. They’ve all been  _ there _ . Done _ that _ . No desire to revisit -  _ no thanks _ .

Jason seemed to rile up at the thought that he couldn’t do  _ anything _ , before he finally deflated a little.

“I’ll take Crime Alley.” Jason snapped, stalking over to where his helmet and holsters were waiting and shoving them into place. “Dicky can shadow if you think someone needs to, but I need to bash some heads - and preferably get knocked around a little myself, so don’t interfere unless you gotta.” He threw the last bit over his shoulder before jumping off the main platform to where his bike was parked.

As he sped out, Dick shared a look with his adoptive father and nodded, giving his wife a quick kiss before going to suit up and follow after his brother.

Bruce turned to those remaining in the room. “Cass? You, Steph, and… Kor'i’?” He shoots a questioning look at the alien to confirm that she intended to join patrol that night. She shared a look with Alfred before giving her father-in-law a firm nod. “You three cover the docs by Chinatown over to Lester Street, I’ll cover South Burnley with Selina.” The girls nodded and made their way over to the changing rooms.

“Damian,” He locked eyes with his youngest son. “You’ll stay here - watch over the manor and keep an eye on your niece and Marinette - she seems to be comfortable with you.” He raised an almost teasing eyebrow at the young man, and it went up a little further at the slight blush that colored his son’s ears. 

“Yes father.” He coughed out, turning to hide his face too late.

“Tim?” The insomniac looked over. “There’s still a lot I won’t share until I clear it with the Parisian heroes or it becomes necessary - but I won’t stop you from continuing to build on what you’ve found.” Tim nodded and returned to the screen.

“Babs, we’ll need Oracle on the comms tonight.” The girl on the screen nodded and shifted around on her end to pull up the needed tabs. “Keep an eye on the areas not being covered and notify us if someone needs to step in.” She nodded along to the instructions as she set up her workstation for the night. “Pay particular attention to any possible sightings or talk on Joker.” He added.

He then turned and addressed all that remained in the cave. “Today has been a lot to digest for everyone, but don’t let it overwhelm you. Stay vigilant - and keep an eye on our guest.” They all nodded, and he headed off to quickly suit up before following those that had already left and joining his fiancé in the Batmobile. 

Once he was gone, Damian shot Alfred a side long look. “You’re not going to share what you know about the Paris matter, are you?” 

“I don’t know what you mean by that, Master Damian.” Alfred’s piercing gaze held him for a moment before he turned to exit the cave. 

“Thought not.” The boy grumbled as he followed after the butler, intent on finding a quiet spot in the house near the girls he was to watch over and get some meditation in.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello everyone! I'm kinda rushing to get this out, so I don't have a lot of time to make a long intro, but I hope you like this chapter and it flows well with the others - I've been having a little writer's block, but all of you're amazing comments make me want to push through and finish this! (That's super big for me!) THANK YOU ALL!!! 🥰🥰🥰😘❤❤❤❤

As Marinette jerked awake, the cackling that always accompanied the familiar explosion faded to a haunting echo. 

She hadn't that memory/dream in a while.

Mari stared at the wall, allowing her tears to silently join the sweat that was pouring down her face as she swallowed her screams - glad of the practice she had at hiding her night terrors from her parents as it helped to avoid disturbing her hosts.

After her head had cleared slightly, she took a deep breath and went through her nearly nightly exercise after a nightmare.

**_I can see_ ** _ the tops of a four poster bed, the cream ceiling, the shadows cast by the moon, and the light fixture above.  _

**_I can feel_ ** _ the soft sheets, the beads of sweat running from my temple, the aches from the injuries I got from the fight with Scarecrow, and the shivers that are starting up at the cool air hitting my face.  _

**_I can hear_ ** _ Tikki and Kaalki breathing on the bed near me, and the distant hooting of an owl on the manor’s grounds. _

**_I can smell_ ** _ the fabric soap used on the sheets. _

**_I can taste_ ** _ blood from biting the inside of my cheek to keep quiet mixing with the sweat and tears. _

After about ten minutes, she sighed and pulled herself up, making sure to avoid disturbing the two Kwamii.

She’d learned as her nightmares got worse over the years, that she was less rested if she just went back to sleep and allowed them to continue - so she had eventually learned to function with very little sleep. 

Keeping an eye on the two sleeping creatures, she stealthily pulled on her shoes and jacket before leaving the room, making sure to close the door as softly as possible. 

She turned around to see the door across the hall partially open, and remembered Jason mentioning that his room was across from the one they had ready for her to take. 

She poked her head in, and saw that it was empty of anyone - but her brother’s taste was evident all over the large room. She looked around and couldn’t help but giggle with a fond smile. Jay-Jay never did have much of a fashion sense beyond the bad-boy biker look.

The room was accented in red at every opportunity - and nothing matched shade or pattern-wise. It wasn’t filthy necessarily - it didn’t even smell like much other than detergent and cologne, but it certainly was messy. There were clothes strewn on every available surface, and numerous wrappers - mainly candy wrappers… 

_ Same old sweet tooth I see.  _ She smirked, remembering how he used to give her puppy-eyes for the last sweet in their stash - only to turn around and split it with her anyway.

She wandered over to his bed and sunk down, breathing in the smell that was semi-familiar. She hadn’t felt this comfortable and relaxed since before Hawkmoth.

She looked around Jason’s room for a bit - getting a sense of the man he’d become - before she felt her phone buzzing in her jacket pocket. 

She pulled it out to see the picture she’d assigned to her papa. 

Oh, that’s right - I was planning on calling them after the others…

She answered, and her parent’s faces filled the screen.

“Cupcake! Your school just called - they said that there was a villain problem with your class-”

“Mari! What happened?!” Her maman interrupted, catching sight of her face. Her parents looked like they were about to book a flight just to check her over.

“I’m fine Papa, Maman - I just got in a bit of a scuffle. The local heroes showed up and took the Scarecrow away, and the hospital checked me over and said I’ll be fine.” She was glad that they could only see her face - she didn’t need another waredad - or worse. 

Her parent’s weren’t ignorant of how often she got caught up in villain attacks at home, but they (like every Parisian) had become disillusioned and too easily able to brush the attacks aside due to Ladybug’s cure. All of Paris had taken to almost pretending that Hawkmoth didn’t exist as a means of coping - they dealt with attacks when they came, but went on with their lives as if nothing had happened after her wave of beetles had “fixed” everything. 

Mari knew it wasn’t healthy in the least, but there was little she could do about it - and in all honesty, it made parts of her job easier. 

She took a deep breath - wanting to change the subject to keep them from guessing how bad it was, but not sure what to expect from the news she had to share. “There’s something you should know though…” They looked up, wary at her tone. “My brother, Jason…. Jason isn’t dead. He found me after the attack, and I’m actually at his adopted dad’s house - Wayne Manor.”

They stared at her, mouths opening as if to say something, but nothing came out.

“I know - I’m still not sure I really believe it myself yet, but it’s true.” She started to tear up again, though her emotions were much more in check than before.

“How…? We read the police report that came with your file, Batman himself confirmed that he’d… passed.” Her maman’s brow furrowed. Her papa looked unsure but hopeful.

“Did he tell you what happened?” He placed a large hand on her maman’s shoulder and she softened at the happy - if not a little watery - look Mari wore. 

Mari shook her head. “We… didn’t really get around to it yet. I guess we kinda didn’t want to...?” She trailed off.

“We understand sweetie.” Sabine smiled after sharing a long look with her husband. “But we’d like to speak with him and Mr. Wayne later today.” Mari nodded, giving them a bigger grin. 

“I’m sure that’ll be fine - they’re all so nice here, and Jay Jay has such a big family now! He has three other brothers, three sisters, a niece - who’s the cutest little girl I’ve ever met! - plus Mr. Wayne and Mr. Pennyworth, their butler.” Her parents gave her soft looks, not being able to remember the last time she’d looked so unburdened. 

“We can’t wait to meet them, Cupcake.” Her papa smiled, the bakery oven sounding in the background. 

“You guys go get the store ready - I’ll let Mr. Wayne and Jay know that you want to talk later and text you when they’re available.” She smiled, not at all bothered at their apologetic looks.

They said their goodbyes and she hung up. 

Sighing, she put the phone back in her pocket and flopped back on the bed. She knew her adoptive parents were wary of her suddenly alive brother, but wanted to be happy for her and hide their scepticism - just as she hid the extent of her injuries from them. 

They hadn’t really ever connected in the way that allowed for total openness - they were her guardians and cared for her deeply, but they were often busy with their bakery - as she was with all her responsibilities. 

She had started calling them “Maman” and “Papa” soon after warming up to them after the adoption as it seemed to make them happy - and it soon became an affectionate way to address them - but they were never quite as close as people seemed to think.

Their “familial bond” was limited by how much she allowed them into her life - she had been afraid of allowing them in only to lose them as she’d lost Jason, so she had only shared the bare necessities of her life before Paris with them, preferring to build a new one and leave the old behind. She was grateful for all they had done for her, but as the situation with the miraculous continued, she felt herself grow further and further from them.

Frustrated, she got up, and decided to wander the manor in an attempt to occupy her mind. 

  
  


Damian’s ears twitched at the soft click of someone attempting to close a door noiselessly and pulled himself from his meditative state. He’d perfected it in the League as it allowed him to remain aware but get some rest as well. His mind strayed to his mother’s training - having him under sporadic attack while being required to constantly hold a boulder up by the rope attached to it. He thinks it was about a week of him not having proper rest… what was he then? Six…? 

He shook his head of the memory and leaned out of the doorway he had hidden himself in to watch as Marinette entered Todd’s room after closing the door to hers. 

He had chosen to meditate in the doorway of a guest room that sat at the end of the hall their guest was in and connected to the hall where his niece was asleep. 

He rose from his position once she’d gone inside and snuck over to peer through the crack to see her wandering the room with her eyes as she sat perched on the bed. She had a far away look that was softened by a small smile that grew as she looked around. 

They both jumped a little when her phone buzzed - the sound amplified by the quiet. 

Her conversation with her parents was interesting. She seemed to be protecting them from the severity of the situation naturally - like it was instinct to downplay her involvement and resulting injuries (with the photos Drake had found, he didn’t doubt that she’d had plenty of practice). 

It made him wonder if there was anyone she was fully truthful with - even herself. 

After the call had ended, she lay sprawled on the bed for a time before getting up and heading for the door - and Damian thanked all of his years with the League for the training that allowed him to return swiftly and noiselessly to the room he’d been in before and close the door enough to hide behind it.

She exited Todd’s room and closed the door before slowly making her way down the hall toward his hiding spot. 

Why  _ was  _ he hiding anyway? It wasn’t as if he was doing anything wrong! He’d been tasked with keeping an eye on her and Mar’i, and was doing so to the best of his ability. The thought of allowing her to know that he was awake and keeping an eye on her, however, the idea didn’t sit quite right as it took away his ability to observe the strange girl without her knowing - something he really wanted to continue to do… for some reason… His head was starting to hurt. He’ll just stock it all up to his training.

He waited until she’d passed by to open the door further and continue to observe her as she slowly wandered the hall, taking her time looking at all the paintings and trinkets on display. Most were Wayne family heirlooms, but others were just gifts sent to his father to gain his favor. Pathetic. 

When Marinette got to the end of the hall, she paused before turning to the right - toward Grayson’s old room that his family used when they stayed overnight. 

Damian slunk out of the room and to the corner to keep a visual on the girl. She seemed to have found an old painting interesting enough to completely stop and take it in. The light from the moon was significant enough that she only had to lean in a little more than normal to marvel at the details. If he remembered correctly (and of course he did), it was a nature scene painting from the Song Dynasty - gifted to his fourth great-grandfather by Chinese royalty. 

She seemed enthralled, and he wouldn’t be able to guess how long she would have looked at it had a small cry not sounded from the door directly to her right. 

Both of their heads snapped up at the sound, and Damian nearly rushed straight in, but Marinette beat him to it. He still sped to the doorway, ready to interfere if it seemed that his niece needed him - leaning in to eavesdrop.

Mari had attuned herself to several different sounds over the years - and a child’s cry one of the first she trained herself to note and respond to.

She didn’t really register the fact that she had entered the room until she was nearly to the large bed in the center. Looking around, she found that either Dick and Kor’i were up, or Mar’i was sleeping on her own. 

The small figure was huddled in the middle of the king sized bed under the covers - her ebony hair tousled and poking out over the top. Not wanting to startle the girl, she cleared her throat.

“Mar’i? Are you alright dear?” The lump on the bed jolted and then froze. Marinette slowly moved forward and sunk on the bed - leaving plenty of space in case the little girl was nervous. 

It took several moments, but the nest of hair shifted to reveal a small, tear-stained face - her big green eyes made impossibly bigger by the moisture. Seeing who it was, the little Tameranean launched herself at the older girl and buried her face into her shoulder. 

“Oh sweetheart, do you want to talk about it?” Marinette took the turn of events in stride, quite used to calming distressed children, and began to smooth out her hair in a soothing gesture. 

“I… I don’t fit in!” Mar’i began to cry again, and Marinette gathered her up tighter and pulled a blanket over to nearly swaddle the girl. 

“Where don’t you fit in, Love?” Marinette asked, keeping her voice pitched low and calm while beginning to rock them a little. ‘ _ Guess I learned all I needed in taking care of people from Jay-Jay _ ’, she mused with a small smile.

“It… it doesn’t matter where we go! Mamma’s home, or here! I just… don’t fit in…” The little girl seemed to shrink in on herself with each word. “Ma-Maybe Karrand’r and Thran were right… maybe I  _ am  _ a mistake.” Her sobs began anew, and Marinette just held her tighter and began to murmur anything she could think of to calm her into her hair. 

“Are they from Tameran?” She asked quietly once the cries had subsided into sniffles. The little head nodded against her after a moment’s hesitation. Marinette huffed in response, understanding the situation, and not overly fond of the implications. She hated the phrase ‘Kids can be cruel’ for it’s blatant acceptance of the matter as well as it’s annoying truth. 

“Well, what do  _ you  _ think?” A blotchy face peered up at her in confusion. “I mean - what do you think of yourself? Your parents made you, and your family raised you - do you think they made a mistake?” She began to say something, then stopped, her brow furrowing. 

Mari unfortunately dealt with similar situations way too often - child akumas prayed on similar emotions and situations. (To be honest, the bullied akumas were much more preferable to the abused and traumatized ones…) She’d learned that one of the best tactics was to change the perspective - kids often didn’t think beyond the issue at hand. Mar’i was being bullied and told she wasn’t enough, therefore, she thought there was something wrong with her. 

If Marinette made her think of it as her parents and family having to do something wrong for the bullies to be right, then it would help her to look at the issue another way (it was also a tactic that helped Mari see if a kid was afraid of / or didn't trust the adults in their life, but she knew the Waynes well enough that she didn’t think that would be an issue).

“Mamma, Daddy, Papa, and the others… they wouldn’t lie to me…” She seemed to be struggling, but that one statement was an absolute fact in her mind that wouldn’t be challenged by some kids - the thought warmed Mari’s heart. 

“No Sweetie, they wouldn’t.” She pulled the girl up so she was sitting on one of her bent legs rather than curled up in a fetal position. “Can… can I tell you a story, Mar’i?”

She got an eager nod in response, and chuckled a little at the enthusiasm. “When I was nine, I started my first year of school in France, and there was this girl that really didn’t like me.”

“Why not?” Mar’i seemed genuinely offended at the thought and Marinette gave a soft laugh. 

“Well, she said that it was because I was different - it was because I had a funny accent, and I didn’t have any real family.” 

“But… you have uncle Jay! He’s your brother!” Mar’i looked quite confused at the faulty logic.

“At the time, I had… lost Jay-Jay. We couldn’t find each other, so I thought that I didn’t have a brother anymore and I was very sad.” She stumbled a bit, trying to figure out how to tone down that particular part of the story.

“You should get him one of these!” Mar’i shoved her wrist and the bracelet that rested on it into her face, shaking it around a bit. “Daddy says that he can find me if I get lost as long as I’m wearing it!” Marinette snorted at the thought of making Jay wear a pink and purple bracelet with little chibi hero charms. 

“You’re right, that would have made everything a lot easier.” She ruffled the girls hair (though not too much - it already looked like it would be a pain to de-tangle). 

“Anyway - the girl would always pick on me - she would say awful things about how I didn’t fit in, she’d trip me, and she even ruined a few of my projects!” Mar’i gasped, and Marinette nodded sagely. 

“What happened to the girl? Did she get into trouble?” 

Marinette sighed, “No - her dad had a lot of money, and he later was elected as mayor, so she was able to get out of almost every punishment.” Mar’i looked greatly disheartened by that - obviously hoping for a quick solution. 

“She was a royal pain in the butt for years - but you want to know what happened?” Mar’i nodded eagerly. “She became one of my very best friends.” 

Mar’i looked thoroughly confused, and Marinette put up her hands to ward off the questions she could see just beneath the surface.

“It took a long time - but she told me something.” Marinette leaned in and locked eyes with the girl. “She said that she was only ever mean to me because she was mad that I had something she wanted. You see, she had a hard relationship with her parents and was mad that my adoptive parents were much more attentive than hers.” 

“Do… do you think that Karrand’r, Thran, and the others are jealous of my Mamma and Daddy?” Mar’i cocked her head to the side with a slightly confused look.

“They might be - but the point of my story is that bullies aren’t mean because of something  _ you  _ do wrong - they’re mean because of something wrong in their life. Sometimes, the hurtful things they say are things they hear from someone else that they’re just repeating, and sometimes they’re just mean because there’s someone in their life who’s being mean to them.” She pulled Mar’i back into her, resuming patting her hair.

“So… It’s not… me?” Mar’i asked, her voice small. 

“No baby, it’s not you.” She soothed. 

She started to hum the song that Luka would always play when she was spiraling - and the little girl relaxed quickly, her breath evening out with a small smile. Marinette shifted them both to stretch out better on the bed and lay out, measuring out her breathing to mirror the half Tamaran’s - and, for the first time in a while, she fell into a dreamless sleep. 

  
  


Damian felt a warmth spread through his chest at the sight he was looking down on. His niece and this strangely captivating girl were curled up together after Marinette had carefully soothed the frightened half alien. 

He reached down and grabbed Dick’s plush ABBA blanket at the foot of bed to spread it over the two. A soft padding and gentle “merow” drew his attention to the foot of the bed as Alfred the cat leapt up and curled in between the two, purring loudly. He gave the feline a pat, and left the room, closing the door softly on his way out.

He returned to the doorway he’d occupied before Marinette had woken up and settled down, returning to his meditation, content to have his charges at ease.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> HAPPY NEW YEAR!!! And goodbye 2020!!!🎆🎇✨🎉🎊 (I'm 23 today!🥳)  
> I'm really sorry about how long this took to get out, but work gets crazy this time of year and I needed to get my Secret Santa story out (https://archiveofourown.org/works/28304484).  
> I was able to explain a lot of (mostly made-up) Miraculous background in this chapter (Thank you fan Wiki pages!) and I'm pretty happy with it😁  
> Hope you all like it😉

Marinette woke up to soft snuffling accompanied by delighted giggles and the bed shifting as the little body under her arm wiggled around. Her internal clock told her it was still before dawn and she had a few hours still before the meeting she’d set up with Lizzy and Sam the day before.

“No Titus!” Mar’i scolded with another giggle, her voice a poor attempt at a whisper. “Nettie is sleeping! You have to let her sleep, mamma and daddy said so!” 

Marinette peeked over the girl’s shoulder to see her trying to shove the large dog’s nose away from her in an attempt to avoid his insistent tongue. The bed was also echoing the hard thumps from the Great Dane’s tail as it rhythmically hit the sides. 

Marinette huffed out a laugh at the most pleasant awakening she’d had in a very long time and scooped the girl closer to her, laughing at the squeal she got out of the little half alien. 

“Nettie!” Mar’i laughed, and soon they were both a mess of giggles as Titus took the sudden movement as an invitation to join them on the bed and wake them further with messy puppy kisses. 

Titus’s assault stopped suddenly as a knock sounded at the room’s door that was already slightly ajar. The two girls followed the dog’s line of sight to see Dick poke his head through. 

“Oh, you two are up… though that may be my fault - I left the door open for Alfred the cat when Kor’i and I came to check on you an hour ago.” He gave a nervous chuckle, scratching the back of his head as he opened the door further.

Titus gave a welcoming bark and bounded over for welcoming pets, which Dick absentmindedly gave as he fixed his gaze to Marinette’s in a searching stare. She returned the look with a cock of her head that seemed to snap him out of his stare as he shook his own head and broke eye contact.

“You girls ready for breakfast?” 

“Yes!” Mar’i hopped up on her feet and on the second bounce - launched herself into the air, flipping twice before plopping back down beside Mari and tugging on her arm. She laughed in response and allowed the little girl to pull her out of the bed.

“Ok, ok - I’m coming, little acrobat.” Once Mari was on her own two feet, Mar’i did a few laps around the bed, giggling happily before launching herself at her father, who caught her with a practiced ease. He set her on his shoulders and looked back at Marinette before they had crossed the doorway.

“You want to stop by your room and change, or head straight down?” She looked at the nearly vibrating alien on his head and laughed. 

“If we can just swing by my room - I’ll grab a sweatshirt and then we can go eat.” She hid a small shiver behind a stretch, her skin beginning to complain at the loss of the bed’s heat. 

“Oh…” They stopped before even entering the hallway that housed her room. “I forgot - my things are still at the hotel…” She trailed off, slowing to a stop to think of an alternative. 

“No worries.” Dick laughed, reaching back to ruffle her hair. “Damian, Alfred and I got everything from the hotel before we picked you up from the Hospital yesterday - when we let your _class_ know you were going to stay with us.” His mouth twisted at the mention of her peers, but he seemed to be restraining himself from commenting, likely because his daughter’s little ears were listening. “We brought it all up before dinner.”

“Oh… Well, thank you.” She gave him a relieved smile and he returned it with a wink. They continued on to the room that lay across from Jason’s - his door now firmly closed. _He must have gone to bed after my late night stroll._ She mused.

She gave the closed door a fond and longing look before popping into her own room. _He’s probably as tired and emotionally drained as me._

She ran into the connected bathroom quickly to splash some water on her face and grimaced at her reflection. The swelling had gone down significantly, and the bruising had firmly settled in over her eye - but at least she could see out of it. She was obviously healing a little faster than was normal - this was normally a blessing, but it did make it a little harder to hide certain important secrets.

She sighed, and moved over to her suitcase to grab the thick Chat Noir hoodie she’d made last year with her tendencies in mind from her suitcase, scoop up the two stirring kwami , and place them in her specialized pocket. On her way out though, she froze.

There was a plate with a half-eaten cookie and a dusting of white sugar resting on the bedside table.

That was _not_ there when she’d left early this morning.

She stared at the innocent-looking offering for almost a full minute, the newly acquired hoodie doing nothing for the ice currently running through her veins.

A knocking at the door reminded her to breathe.

“Nettie? You ok in there?” Dick’s muffled voice sounded a little strained - likely worried she was having another panic attack, and he honestly wasn’t wrong. 

“It’s ok Marinette.” Tikki flew out and patted the hand that was reaching out subconsciously toward the plate. “I’ll explain later.” 

She waited until the tension from Mari’s shoulders started to drop and their eyes met. Mari nodded and the kwami zipped back into the warmth of the pocket made to rest just below where the hood connected to the neck of the jacket - over her heart and near enough to her ear that the little god could whisper and not be heard outside of her holder. 

She took a deep breath, and opened the door.   
  
“I’m fine - just had to dig through my suitcase a bit to find it.” She plucked at the hem of the jacket, and shot him a sheepish smile. “Sorry it took longer than I expected.”

Dick looked relieved and returned her grin. “No biggie - cool hoodie, by the way - is that a hero’s symbol?” 

“Yeah!” She gushed, easily slipping into partner-praise mode - relieved for the distraction. “It’s Chat Noir’s! He’s a hero from Paris - his power is “Cataclysm”, it turns anything he touches to dust!” She chattered on about the blond hero as they descended to the dining room - mostly able to push the panic from a few minutes ago from her mind for later. 

The reprieve didn’t last long. 

Jason was sitting at the table looking like death warmed over (or he was brought back from the dead - wink wink, nudge nudge). His coffee mug was comically large and had a Red Robin (the restaurant) logo on it crossed out with a hand-drawn Red Robin (vigilante) logo under it. 

He glanced up and locked eyes with his sister - the look he had made a pit form in her stomach. 

“Sit.” He gestured to the seat across from him, and she slowly sank in - locking eyes with Dick who looked beyond nervous as he ushered Mar’i out of the room under the pretense of finding her mom and he retreated to the back of the room.

“Jay-Jay?” She started, trying to interpret the look he was giving as something _other_ than the one he used to get when he thought she’d done something ridiculously dangerous and was planning to overreact. 

He maintained his intense stare-down as he lifted a manila file from his lap and tossed it in between them onto the table. Several pictures of her at various angles and clarities spilled out - all taken during akuma attacks. 

She had no idea how he got these - there was _supposed_ to be a block on outgoing information... 

The images she’s tried so hard to block from her own mind - of her glaring mortality, and her small stature against the bigger-than-life super-psychos created weekly by her town’s resident nutcase... **_and_** these pictures showcased her fighting alone - which is just how she felt. With the world on her shoulders - watching and judging her every move. 

She of course knew she had a team - and as Ladybug she’s _always_ had Chat, but she’s also always been looked to as the leader - by Chat, the other heroes, all of _Paris_ … and _now?_ Now she was the one _and only_ guardian in charge of protecting and caring for the most powerful magical artifacts in the world that housed actual pocket-sized **_Gods_ **. 

Their gazes met and he paused at the burning fire in her eyes, before his own hardened. The silence between them stretched as they tried to glare the other into submission - Dick shifting uncomfortably from foot to foot in the background. 

As she stared at him, Mari noticed the odd aura that had registered before (but she hadn’t had the chance to talk with Tikki about yet) intensifying. It felt like a twisted, sick version of miraculous magic - and it was getting stronger as their stare-down continued - pulsating and nearly glowing a toxic green that made her think of Chat. She wanted to figure it out, but her outrage was taking over her rational thought process at the moment. 

The silence was broken when Damian stalked into the room looking refreshed and damp from a shower. He stopped a few paces past the doorway - stiffening at the thick tension he’d walked into like an unexpected spider web to the face, and his stance widened subconsciously. 

“What is this?” He looked down at the pictures scattered on the table and groaned. “ _Todd_ …”

“She’s being **reckless**! Just because that _bug-hero_ can fix everything with a wave of her magic f*ckin’ wand doesn’t mean **she,** ” he jabbed a finger at his sister and her gaze narrowed in response. “Can go out and turn herself into target practice for Hawkbitch’s flavor of the week!” He picked up the picture of her escaping “KA-BOB” (eyeroll) after he got in a shot and she was escaping to transform. (One shot! One! With how many knives flying at her, she should get a little recognition for making it out with only a _slight_ stab wound to the side - and it didn’t even hit any vital organs! That had been difficult to fight with - even with the suit staving off a large portion of the pain).

“ _Turn myself into_ -” She seethed. He was actually… not **only** did he just _insult_ her hero identity, but he was reducing the _multiple_ attacks she’d been caught in as a civilian (when left with no other option but to distract or protect until she found an opening to escape and transform) as her just being _reckless_. 

“Look, Jay-bird -” Dick started only for Marinette to cut in.

“ _You_ do **not** get to judge me on this.” She hissed, standing up and leaning in on her hands to better glare down at him. “You left me _alone_ for **Ten**. **Years**.” He flinched. “I went through the _Joker_ \- **alone** \- for **_two days_** _…_ ” she cut that thought off, pausing a moment before continuing - all of the boys having gone a little white. “ _F*ucking_ _Batman_ carrying your **_corpse_** out of a burning building, moving to a foreign country - _alone_ in the world, and now there’s a f*cking _terrorist_ that turns your own emotions against you - creating brain-washed monsters that **_kill_** _.._. I have watched my friends and family die _over and over._ Jason - I’ve watched you…” She gulped in a shaky breath and took a moment to cut off her ramble before it got into dangerous identity-revealing territory. 

“You have been gone a _while_ Jay-Jay - you have **no** **_idea_** what I’ve been through, and what I’m capable of handling.” She shoved herself away from the table - the chair making a horrible sound against the wood floor - amplified by the fact it was in an otherwise dead-silent room. Marinette pulled in a deep breath and closed her eyes - and when she opened them, the anger wasn’t gone, it was... blocked. As if she had shoved it aside. 

As Bats, the three boys were very familiar with different kinds of anger - irrational, passive aggressive, explosive, magic-induced, chemically induced, insane, misdirected… but repressed? Not as much. As unhealthy as their emotional coping mechanisms were, even _they_ recognized this was going to come back and bite her in the butt. 

“I need to get ready - I am meeting up with those two kids I met before the ‘scarecrow-tour’ at eight in front of Gotham Suites.” Her voice was uneven, but her face was blank as she stiffly walked out of the room leaving the three boys behind staring after her.

“Well shit.” Jason dropped his head into his hands as Dick and Damian shared a look. “shit” pretty much summed that ‘conversation’ up. 

* * *

“Marinette! This isn’t Paris, if you need to be angry - be angry! Your brother was being protective, but he doesn’t know how bad it is there - or how capable you are - and he still shouldn’t have said that.” Tikki flew out of her pocket as soon as the door closed to her room, Kaalki zipping out after her and over to the bed.

“Tikki… what was that green… _stuff_ on Jason? It was like some kind of goopy- **sick** aura. It felt almost like a miraculous, but _wrong_ \- and I’ve noticed it before, but it was almost worse today.” Tikki pinned her with a look.

“I _know_ you’re avoiding this issue Marinette, and we _will_ continue this later… but the “aura issue” with Jason is a little bit of a bigger problem.” She trailed off, flying over to the bathroom counter to sit as Mari began to get ready, a thoughtful look on her face. 

“Do you remember when I told you that there were times where others had gotten a hold of the Cat and Ladybug miraculous to make the wish?” Marinette nodded, looking down to see that Tikki was avoiding her gaze, and the girl squinted at her. 

“As I’ve said before, Hawkmoth isn’t the first to terrorize in order to get the miraculous - and unlike now - it has worked before.” She looks up and sees the worry in the young Guardian’s eyes and firmly states “And I _know_ it won’t work now. You are by far one of the best Ladybugs I’ve ever had, and I have every faith in you and Chat Noir - the previous holders and Guardians that lost their miraculous weren’t anywhere _near_ as capable and strong. You **will** defeat him and get Duusuu and Nooroo back - I know it.”

Marinette looked reassured - if not a little nervous. “No pressure.” She laughed a little shakily - but it was a sincere laugh, so Tikki let it slide in favor of continuing. 

“There was a man... nearly six hundred and fifty years ago.” Tikki’s eyes took on a far-away quality as she continued. “He was an up-and-coming physician in a small kingdom near modern Kyrgyzstan, and he was looking for a way to save the life of his kingdom’s crown prince who had a terminal illness. He was friends with the Grand Master of the Order at the time - who told him one day about the wish that could be made with the Cat and Ladybug miraculous. He never thought that his friend would sneak into the temple and steal Plagg’s and my miraculous, take us to a cave with a large spring in the middle of the desert several miles from the temple, and make a _very_ dangerous wish.” Tikki sighed and began to float and “pace” mid-air.

“We tried to explain the repercussions of any wish made - no matter how pure the intent - but he refused to listen to us, wanting his position to be elevated so he and his young wife would never have to worry for money again. As he began to decide how to word his wish, he came to the conclusion that he needed a way to heal _anyone_ that came to him - so he could keep and grow his status after the Prince was healed.” She began to “pace” faster as the story progressed, almost vibrating as she went.

“He wished for a way to revive the sick, the gravely injured, and even the dead.” Mari let out a small gasp and dropped the blender she was using to apply concealer (though she had only been half-paying attention to her make-up anyway once Tikki had started). Tikki only nodded in acknowledgement of her reaction. 

“That wish resulted in what has been dubbed as the ‘Lazarus Pits’ - and unlike other wishes I’ve told you about where there were great outer-disasters that resulted from them, in this case - the pits themselves were both the blessing **_and_ **the curse. The pits would restore the health of nearly anyone that stepped inside - but it came at a very steep price. To regain youth, health, or life - the Pit will chip away at the recipient’s mind. Their sanity and morality are warped with each dip in the pool - some are driven completely insane.” The little God grimaced. “There are many of these pits all over the world - even Plagg and I don’t know how many, or where they are located until we are near enough to sense one.” 

“The man who made the wish - Ra’s Al Ghul - returned us to the box before any of the Guardians even knew we were gone, and we weren’t released from our boxes for _fifty years_ after that. We heard that Ra’s had used the Pit to save the Prince's life - but the Prince (who wasn’t all there to begin with) went insane, killed Ra’s wife, and the King locked Ra’s in a cell with his wife’s corpse to die.” Mari choked and started to turn green. 

“What happened to him?” She whispered.

“He escaped, used some form of early germ-warfare to infect the Prince with another deadly illness, and then killed both him and the King when he was asked to heal him again. He then led the tribe he was born into in killing every inhabitant in the kingdom and started a cult of assassins that thrives to this day - as does he as far as I know, since he’s been using the pits to regain his youth and health whenever necessary last I heard.” She sunk back to the counter, and Mari slumped against the wall across from the sink. 

“And… Jason?” She whispered, already knowing how the story connected to the strange _wrongness_ that was latched onto her brother, but afraid to say it.

“He has used the pits - likely after he’d died.” Tikki said grimly. “It does not seem to have affected him as severely as I have seen with others - and I have seen _many_ that have come into contact with those accursed pools - but the corrupted mix of mine and Plagg’s magic that is stuck to him like a parasite is unmistakable. It seems that the anger and violence he reacts with to situations has been what the Pit affected most - though it looks like he has a much better handle on it than I would expect.” Mari choked out a sob - she knew that the green goop wouldn’t be good, but _this…?_

“And then there's the other boy…” Marinette looked up questioningly. “The youngest, Damian, also has the magic signature of the Pits attached to him, though his is more subtle - yet it’s more strongly bonded to him - as if it is more ingrained _into_ him.” Tikki’s eyes took on a dark quality. “The only explanation I have for **that** is if he’s been _repeatedly_ exposed to a Pit - since **birth**.”

“Since… _Birth_?” Mari whispered horrified.

“As… as close as I can tell, yes.” Tikki nodded, floating over to the bed and settling in next to Kaalki. “Mari… this - this isn’t good. The Lazarus Pits are _extremely_ dangerous - and these two are connected to it - deeply. Ra’s has always been very protective of the Pits. He knows where most - if not all - of them are, and has created assassin-filled strongholds around them. He lets only a select few use them, and has an iron hold on his people - so you can bet that it’s near impossible for anyone to use one without his express permission.” 

“So… Damian has been connected to this ‘Ra’s’ since he was born, and Jay-Jay…?” She trailed off, half-way through pulling on the Chat Noir hoodie, her head barely poking through and the bottom scrunched up. 

“I don’t know… maybe it has something to do with the Batman? You said that he used to work with him as a partner, right?” Mari nodded, pulling her hair out after she got the hoodie situated. Tikki scrunched up her face in thought. “Other than the fact that it was a well-known villain that… hurt him, I can’t think of another thing that would catch Ra’s eye. My best bet is his connection to Batman.”

“Of course - _Batman_ .” Mari sighed. “I **really** didn’t want to even talk _about_ him while I was here - as unlikely as that is in Gotham. Now I’m starting to come to the conclusion that we may actually need to reach out and talk _with_ him.” Tikki gave her a questioning look. 

“You’ve made a point to avoid speaking with him directly ever since you contacted the league - are you sure this is the best idea?” Tikki wasn’t looking to sway her one way or another, just help her get her thoughts out - it was a common role she took up to help Mari think things through.

“I… I started thinking of it after the Scarecrow attack. He _mentioned_ ** _Hawkmoth_** , Tikki - that madman contacted a well-known villain in the city his “favorite class” of _lycée_ _children_ went halfway _across the world_ in an effort to escape him for one measly month. Batman knows his villains, and he might know how Hawkmoth got in contact with Dr. Crane in the first place.” She started to pace, her hands flailing about. 

“ _Then_ there’s the ‘coincidence’ that Hawkmoth contacted a villain and told him about our class before we’d even been here a **_full day_ ** ! How did he know Tikki?! As far as I’ve been told, the Mayor contacted Mr. Wayne directly and set this up as a way to get us some distance from the situation in Paris - I don’t have any reason to believe it was Chloe’s dad, and Mr. Wayne might be **Batman** , so who else knew?! Even Mrs. Bustier knew only the bare minimum as the Mayor wanted to keep the fact that he was basically hiding us away so we wouldn’t cause any Akuma issues and give the city a break a secret!” 

“And now, I have to _find_ Batman and ask if he knows a _six hundred year-old_ **assassin cult leader** , _and_ if he knows why he would bother to _resurrect one of his Robins_ \- oh _shit_ !” She froze and whipped her head around to lock eyes with the Kwami. “What if… what if _Jay-Jay_ is still a part of his group! What if I start asking questions and he’s there, or listening in and figures me out?! If Hawkmoth gets ahold of him, then he’ll know more than enough to get to me - not to mention how the Pit-anger might react with an akuma...” Tikki flew up to try and distract her from the spiral she was starting in on.

  
“Mari, Hawkmoth isn’t here, and it wouldn’t be such a bad idea to…” But Mari didn’t seem to hear her.

“ _Wait_ …” Mari froze again with a look of horror. “If he’s still a member of the team… then there’s only one of the Gotham vigilantes that matches his build…” She scrunched up her nose as if something foul had been placed under it. “ _Of course_ he’d be the one wearing that **monstrosity** \- I swear, that thing looks like a dented bucket painted to look like an insect’s _head_ . Of all the horrible, uninspired _trash_ I’ve seen heroes **and** villains wear…” She threw up her hands, and turned into the bathroom to wet her hair and pull it into a French braid, muttering under her breath about hero and villain costumes. 

Tikki shook her head fondly at her holder - fashion atrocities had pulled her from one spiral into another more times than she could count, and ranting about color combos was much better than stressing about the things she couldn’t control. Marinette had a good idea of what she was going to do about the situation, and overthinking it never helped - she thrived in situations where she made instinctual decisions. 

The little God watched as Mari finished getting ready and double checked that the pocket she’d made for the kwami in her bag was filled with treats and two hand warmers in case it got cold. Tikki was so proud of how seriously Marinette took her responsibilities - especially those of the Guardian that had been dumped on her as suddenly as the Ladybug earrings had been. 

She rotated the kwami that she would take with her and Tikki each day, to train in holding more than one, allow everyone the chance to bond with her, and give each time out of her room. No guardian had ever treated them as anything other than tools - following the rules and guidelines set by the Guardians before them. 

The kwami were treated with respect, but rarely allowed out or a chance to interact when they weren’t with an active holder. Even Fu only really spoke with Wayzz - preferring to keep them hidden away and avoid detection. 

They were used to being locked away for years, taken out to get attached to a holder that was thrust into a war, and watching them suffer - returning to the box after their chosen was killed or had their Miraculous taken. It was rare for them to have the chance to say goodbye. 

Tikki and Plagg have had to watch more holders suffer through loss, sacrifice and death than either dared to admit. Their Miraculous were only ever taken out in the most dire of times - and the Human Race had proven to be extremely combative through their short time in this world. 

“Come on, Tik,” Mari called out, adjusting the bag’s strap on her shoulder. “We should get going if we’re going to be on time to meet Sam and Llizzy.” 

Tikki blinked the ghosts of the past away, and took a steadying breath before turning to the young Guardian. 

“Do you think it would be a good idea to invite Jason?” Mari sighed, and scratched the back of her neck. 

“It… probably wouldn’t hurt. It wasn’t uncommon for him to get on me about being ‘reckless’ whenever I scared him.” She smiled softly. “He’s probably a little unsure how to react with how I blew up at him… I always used to just agree and try to soothe things over.” She giggled. “We both knew the conversation was never over, but it seemed to help him feel like he could control the things that might hurt me.” 

“He’s very protective, just like a good big brother.” Tikki smiled, zipping up to nuzzle at the girl’s cheek before joining Kaalki in the bag. 

“He’s the best brother.” Tension that had been building since the interaction in the dining room loosened from her shoulders as she let out a long breath. They could do this. It wasn’t going to be easy to overcome all the trauma and change that separated them, but they would do it - and they’d be stronger for it.

**Author's Note:**

> I honestly am curious how the response to this will be - and while it kinda sounds like I'm only doing it for the views, I know that your comments and interest will keep me invested past my inevitable writers blocks. Please, please, PLEASE leave your thoughts - even if it's just to say it wasn't worth your effort. I do this to interact with others who share my interests (I'm an introvert with no friends during a pandemic - somebody throw me a bone here). Ok, I'm done begging / whining... thanks for reading and hope you come back!


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